Tenn. Bank, Bell South to Promote Internet Services
June 8, 1998
National Commerce Bancorp and BellSouth Corp. announced
they will cross-promote Internet access and on-line
banking in the Southeast.
National Commerce will offer discounted on-line banking
and rebates on electronic bill payments to customers
who use the telephone company's BellSouth.net Internet
service.
In turn, BellSouth will promote the bank's Internet
service via Netscape Communications Corp.'s browser,
which it distributes to its more than 235,000
BellSouth.net users.
Except for small payments between BellSouth and
National Commerce for generating traffic on each other's
Web sites, no money is exchanged under the deal, said
William R. Reed Jr., vice chairman of the $5 billion-asset
Memphis banking company.
"It is a way of getting our name and product out in front
of people a lot more quickly," Mr. Reed said.
The $14.95 start-up fee will be waived for BellSouth.net
service customers who open Internet banking accounts.
The bank, which uses Security First Technologies'
Virtual Branch Manager and offers bill payment through
Checkfree Corp., will also give away bill payment for
three months and offer a $1 rebate for each of up to 10
electronic bill payments per month.
BellSouth, which charges $19.95 a month for unlimited
Internet usage, will not reduce its price for National
Commerce customers.
Though BellSouth has called the deal-its first such with
a bank-a " preferred partnership," officials said they are
discussing similar cobranding arrangements with other
financial institutions.
But they expect that National Commerce's 136-branch
network, which overlaps BellSouth's territory and
includes 115 branches in supermarkets and other stores,
will be a key asset for promoting BellSouth.net.
"We are going to be talking with National Commerce
about utilizing their in- supermarket branch offices for
distribution of software disks," said Andrew S. Dietz,
director of product marketing for BellSouth.
National Commerce has 5,000 Internet banking users and
hopes to attract more by publicizing the BellSouth
service on its Web site and on automated teller machine
screens and receipts, according to a BellSouth
spokeswoman.
BellSouth.net, which was started in August 1996, is
available in 43 cities in nine southern states-including
National Commerce strongholds Tennessee, North
Carolina, and Georgia. "What we bring to the table is
significant reach, " said Mr. Dietz.
BellSouth's members match the profile of the type of
customer National Commerce is seeking, bank officials
said. "Their customer base is above average, certainly
higher than the local providers," said Mr. Reed. "They
are more quality sensitive than price sensitive."
The Main Street sensibility engendered by a local phone
company and a local bank may help draw new
users-"newbies" in Internet parlance-into the on-line
world.
"The phone companies traditionally rate high for
security and reliability, " said Gary Arlen, president of
Arlen Communications Inc. in Bethesda, Md. "Putting
them together with banks-another staid, solid
community organization-is a very attractive deal."
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