NBC and CNET's Snap Announces New Content and Advertising Partners for NextGeneration Internet Portal for Higher Speed Users
New Content and Charter Advertiser Partners Include:
A&E Television Networks, Bank of America, Birdhouse, Film.com, Honkworm,
House of Blues Digital, Inktomi, LAUNCH Media, The Mountain Zone,
Pseudo Programs Inc., Staples.com, Tower Records, Toyota
And World Wrestling Federation (WWF)
SAN FRANCISCO, March 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Snap LLC, the Internet portal
company from NBC and CNET (www.snap.com), today announced a new round of content and advertising partnerships for a new, free portal service designed for higher-speed Internet users (formerly known by the code-name Snap "Cyclone"). Snap.com for higher-speed users is the first service of its kind from an Internet portal company, offering a next-generation experience that showcases multimedia content, search and navigation services.
The new service, which today officially launched a preview version, willprovide Internet users with an experience that showcases all rich media types-- video, audio, gaming, animation, telephony, and more -- built atop thepowerful Snap.com Internet directory and search service. The new service,which features the largest rich media directory in the world, offers richmedia content in key Snap topics: News, Finance, Sports, Entertainment,Television, Music, Video, Games, Movies, Computing, Shopping and Travel.
New content partners announced today include: A&E Television Networks'HistoryChannel.com, Birdhouse Projects Inc., Film.com, Honkworm, House of Blues Digital, LAUNCH Media, The Mountain Zone, Pseudo Programs Inc. and World Wrestling Federation (WWF).
Snap today also unveiled charter advertising agreements with Bank of
America, Staples.com, Tower Records and Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc. for the new Snap.com for higher-speed users.
These content partners and charter advertisers will join 21 content and e-commerce partners that last month announced their participation in Snap.com for higher-speed users, including: APB Online, Bloomberg, CMP Media's TechWeb, CNBC/Dow Jones Business Video, CNET, INTERVU Inc., iVillage Inc., MSNBC, NBC Entertainment, Quokka Sports, Preview Travel, Resort Sports Network, RollingStone.com, SonicNet, Sony Online Entertainment, Spinner.com, Tower Records, UltimateTV, VideoSeeker, and WeatherLabs.
Snap today also unveiled a new rich media search technology partnership with Inktomi Corp, (Nasdaq: INKT) a leading provider of Web search engine technologies and scalable Internet infrastructure software. Inktomi Corp. will provide the new Snap service with proprietary Inktomi search technology that empowers high-speed Internet users to find the best rich media resources on the Web. Search capabilities will be enhanced by easy-to-use, cutting-edge
services developed by Inktomi, specifically to yield topical results that include the best video and audio content and media types.
At launch, the new Snap service features the largest rich media directory in the world, built by Snap's own editorial team. This hand-built directory includes listings for rich media sites in over 300 sub-categories and growing each day. This proprietary rich media directory enables users to retrieve sites spotlighting video, audio, animation, and/or interactivity.
Said Edmond Sanctis, Chief Operating Officer, Snap LLC: "This new Snap service for higher speed users has been welcomed with open arms by commerce, technology and media companies looking for a strong portal partner with which to navigate the exciting new high-speed world of convergence. As we launch this new service today we are proud to announce these powerful additions to our roster of partners."
This new Snap service is offered directly to higher-speed Internet users by such carriers as Bell Atlantic Internet Solutions, GTE InterNetworking, SBC Internet Services, Cable & Wireless and others (For full details, see related release, "NBC and CNET's Snap Announces New Distribution and Carriage Partners for Next Generation Internet Portal for Higher Speed Users").
Snap.com for higher-speed users also will be available as an option, freeof charge at www.snap.com, designed for all Internet users with higher-speed capabilities. Those users also may access the new service directly at speed.snap.com.
Additional content, distribution, technology and advertising partnerships for the new service will be unveiled in the coming months.
New content partner plans for Snap.com for higher-speed users:
* A&E Television Networks -- A&E Television Networks' HistoryChannel.com Web site will showcase on the new Snap service, "This Day in History," a virtual treasure trove replete with decades of audio and video content. Working with HistoryChannel.com, Snap.com for higher-speed users will enable its audience to see and hear events that changed the world -- from Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I have a dream" speech to Lou Gehrig's farewell to baseball. HistoryChannel.com's vast collection is drawn from the most famous
broadcasts and recordings of the twentieth century. Internet users can tap into the power of the past and the promise of the future at
HistoryChannel.com, the "Best Search in History."
* Birdhouse Projects Inc. -- Birdhouse (www.b-house.com) will offer the new Snap service video highlights of the legendary Tony Hawk and his Birdhouse pro skateboarding team. Snap.com for higher-speed users will spotlight highlights of each Birdhouse skater in action, as well as instructional video on the hottest skateboarding moves. Birdhouse Projects Inc. is the world's leading company devoted to producing the finest skateboards, high-tech equipment and cutting edge skateboard apparel.
* Film.com -- Film.com(R), one of the most popular entertainment sites on the Web, will showcase content from its streaming movie review service on Snap.com for higher-speed users. Film.com boasts a wide collection of irresistible movie programming including thousands of reviews, feature stories, interviews, and international film festival coverage. In addition there is special events coverage, movie reviews for kids and by kids, and the best collection of streaming short films on the Internet. Film.com was founded in 1995 by film critic Lucy Mohl, who was a syndicated reviewer for NBC Newschannel from 1991-1994, and has enjoyed a 15-year professional career as a
critic in both electronic and print media. It has been nominated for three consecutive Webby awards and received numerous other honors. Film.com is ownedby RealNetworks, the established market leader and pioneer in the delivery of real-time media over the Internet.
* Honkworm -- Honkworm International L.L.C. is an online entertainment and advertising company, specializing in creating streaming media for the Web.Honkworm will be working with Snap.com for higher speed users and select third-party content providers to showcase original streaming media content that takes advantage of all that rich media offers. Honkworm has created several online animated shows including the popular "Fishbar" series, which has been broadcast on national television by MTV. Honkworm Webisodes, sometimes sponsored and used as engaging alternatives to banner advertising, are watched by visitors from over 90 countries. Honkworm content has been licensed or commissioned by Lucent, Atom Films, Broadcast.com, RealNetworks,
Playboy, Hotwired, Macromedia, Microsoft, Apple, among others.
* House of Blues Digital -- HOB Digital, House of Blues' digital media
division, is committed to the production, capture, promotion, and digital distribution of live music content taking place at the House of Blues entertainment venues and other select premiere venues worldwide. HOB Digital, which maintains www.hob.com and www.liveconcerts.com, will provide Snap.com for higher speed users with access to some of the hottest live and archived music events on the Web. With a production infrastructure that includes the
HOB Digital Studios, nationwide production affiliates, and backend
partnerships with the leaders in digital distribution, HOB Digital has the ability to produce, capture and broadcast digital content through various mediums including the Internet, broadband cable, HDTV, satellite, DVD, and traditional media.
* LAUNCH Media -- LAUNCH Media will provide Snap's new service with select multimedia music content from its ever-growing Internet music service that features exclusive content from top and emerging artists. One of the Web's premier music sites for discovering new music and breaking music news, LAUNCH.com currently offers artist biographies, album reviews, concert reviews, exclusive artist features and full length music videos. LAUNCH is also one of the largest music community sites where users can register to receive personalized music information, create home pages, participate in chat
events, and more. LAUNCH Media Inc. is a digital media company dedicated to creating the premier Internet destination for discovering new music. LAUNCH produces both LAUNCH on CD-ROM and LAUNCH on the Web at www.launch.com. Headquartered in Santa Monica, LAUNCH was founded in 1994 and is a privately held company. Strategic investors include Intel, GE Capital, NBC, Allen & Co., Chris Blackwell, Phoenix Partners, Arts Alliance, Avalon Technologies and Cheil Jedang.
* MountainZone.com -- MountainZone.com, a leading mountain sports Web site and e-tailer, will provide Snap.com for higher-speed users with high-action multimedia outdoor sports content, including skiing, snowboarding, climbing, mountain biking, hiking and photography. MountainZone.com will showcase its highly acclaimed cybercasts, which include real-time video, audio and photos of events like the upcoming '99 Mount Everest climb. Launched in 1996, MountainZone.com has created one of the Internet's most successful virtual communities and is an expert in online vertical marketing. From first-hand interviews with Olympic gold medalist Picabo Street and IMAX Everest star
Ed Viesturs to multimedia cybercasts of the '97 and '98 Mount Everest climbs, MountainZone.com offers visitors more than 5,000 outdoor retail products and more than 50,000 pages of award-winning mountain sports stories, interviews, and photos. MountainZone.com, ( mountainzone.com ) and its sister Web site SkiResorts.com ( skiresorts.com ) are produced and owned by The Zone Network, a privately held web publishing company based in Seattle,
Washington.
* Pseudo Programs Inc. -- Pseudo Programs Inc., the premier provider of online Net-Television entertainment, will showcase on Snap.com for higher speed users select live and archived shows that it Netcasts daily. Each week, Pseudo (www.pseudo.com) produces and Netcasts over forty different interactive Net-TV shows, representing almost 200 original programming hours per month. All of Pseudo's Net-Television shows are produced and Netcast from its 30,000 square foot studio in the heart of New York City. From professional wrestling to poetry, hip-hop to hackers, girl-power to games, Pseudo shows will appeal to Snap users looking for the best that rich media offers.
* World Wrestling Federation (WWF) -- Snap.com for higher speed users will showcase weekly WWF Webcasts, featuring all the latest World Wrestling Federation news and gossip, complete with special guest WWF superstars. The WWF will also offer users access to a special WWF Archive area dating back to last year. Titan Sports, located in Stamford, Connecticut, is a privately held company that does business as the World Wrestling Federation. As a leader in sports entertainment, Titan's business is structured around television, live
events, pay-per-view, print and on-line publishing, home video, merchandising and licensing on a worldwide basis. The "wwf.com" Web site is one of the most popular on the World Wide Web receiving over 75 million page views a month.
Charter Advertiser plans for Snap.com for higher-speed users:
* Bank of America -- Bank of America, a leader in rich media advertising initiatives, will utilize the rich media capabilities of Snap.com for higher-speed users with its interactive advertising ad entitled "Banking for Your Life." The cutting-edge campaign will offer Snap.com for higher-speed users an entertaining multimedia experience spotlighting the many benefits of online banking. Bank of America is widely recognized as the nation's leader in online banking, with more than 1 million of the bank's customers banking online via the Internet, America Online, WebTV or personal financial management software. Bank of America, with $618 billion in total assets, is
the largest bank in the United States, with full-service consumer and
commercial operations in 22 states and the District of Columbia. Bank of America provides financial products and services to 30 million households and 2 million businesses, as well as international corporate financial services for business transactions in 190 countries. Bank of America stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York, Pacific and London stock exchanges and certain shares are listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. For more information, please visit www.bankamerica.com and www.nationsbank.com.
* Staples.com -- Staples.com has signed on to become a charter sponsor of Snap.com for higher-speed users. Launched in the fall of 1998, Staples.com is Staples' e-commerce business unit that serves the home office and small- to medium-sized business customer via the Internet. Staples.com will take advantage of rich media to spotlight its virtual store that offers easy-to-use, customized features and intuitive functions to slash the cost and hassle out of purchasing office supplies. Snap.com for high-speed users will enable consumers to rapidly connect to the more than 6,000 products currently available on Staples.com, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Staples Inc. is a
$7 billion retailer of office supplies, furniture and technology to consumers and business from home-based businesses to Fortune 50 companies in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany. Headquartered outside Boston, Staples invented the office superstore concept and today is the largest operator of office superstores in the world. The company has over 37,000 employees serving customers through more than 900 office superstores,
mail order catalogs, e-commerce and a contract business. Customers receive free delivery on all orders over $50 and next-business day delivery is
available in most U.S. markets.
* Tower Records -- Tower Records, the world's largest independent music retailer and the premier music retailer on Snap.com for higher-speed users, also will become one of the new service's charter advertisers. Tower Records is utilizing animated banner advertisements to link users to preview Tower's massive inventory. Tower enables users to sample every track from every featured album online at "virtual listening stations." Tower Records has long been recognized and respected throughout the world for its unique brand of
retailing. The company's phenomenal expansion over the last 3 decades has brought the Tower name and retail philosophy to 17 countries across the globe. Tower operates 220 record, video and book stores, 2 art galleries and 6 outlet stores. The company launched one of the first Internet music sites at towerrecords.com.
* Toyota -- Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc. will take advantage of this new rich media platform to advertise throughout Snap.com for higher-speed users, deploying both banner ads as well as promotions that make use of different sizes and media types -- animation, audio and interactivity -- potentially including Macromedia Shockwave, Real Audio and other rich media technologies.
About Snap LLC.
Snap LLC, the Internet portal service company from NBC and CNET
(Nasdaq: CNET), maintains the Snap.com flagship portal service
( snap.com ) and the newly launched Snap.com portal for
higher-speed Internet users ( speed.snap.com ), the first-ever service of its kind. Snap's Internet portal services feature content from over 100 leading Web publishers. Snap's Internet portal services are distributed by more than 70 leading Internet Service Providers, telephone and communications companies, PC manufacturers and third-party marketers.
Snap's Internet portal services offer users the most powerful way to
organize and find anything on the Internet. Both Snap.com and Snap.com for higher-speed users are logically arranged to give users the quickest route to the best of what they are looking for on the Web, providing efficient, high-quality Internet search results and directory listings and the most often-used content. At the heart of Snap's portal services is a directory of Web sites and over 400 resource centers, built by a team of editors and reviewers to ensure quality, freshness and usefulness. Users may either search
the Snap directory by using keywords, or browse through the directory's 16 topics.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Snap: Robert Silverman, 212-664-2756, robert.silverman@nbc.com, or
Frances Byrne, 415-875-7913, francesb@snap.com
A&E Television Networks: Vicky Kahn, 212-210-9762, vicky.kahn@aetn.com
Bank of America: Jeff Hershberger, Bank of America, 415-622-0870 or
jeff.hershberger@bankamerica.com
Birdhouse: Sarah Hall, Sarah Hall productions, 212-529-1598,
shpny@aol.com
Film.com: Jenny Sorensen, RealNetworks Inc., 206-674-2374, jenny@real.com
Honkworm: Al Winsor, 206-748-7730, al@honkworm.com
House of Blues Digital: Ann Glenn, 323-848-2584, ann@hob.com
LAUNCH Media: Heather Crosby, 212-246-6023, heather@launch.com
MountainZone.com: Meredith Goldstein, 206-621-8630 x210,
meredithg@mountainzone.com
Pseudo Programs Inc.: Mark Hazlin, DKA News, 212-685-4300,
mhazlin@dkanews.com
Staples: Shannon Lapierre, 508-253-8468, shannon.lapierre@staples.com
Tower Records: Louise Solomon, 916-373-2574, lsolomon@towerrecords.com
Toyota: Diana DeJoseph 310-618-6721, diana_dejoseph@toyota.com
World Wrestling Federation: Susan Warner, 203-637-1374, jwarner@aol.com
SOURCE Snap LLC
CO: Snap LLC; A&E Television Networks; Bank of America; Birdhouse; Film.com;
Honkworm; House of Blues Digital; Inktomi; LAUNCH Media; The Mountain
Zone; Pseudo Programs Inc.; Staples.com; Tower Records; Toyota; World
Wrestling Federation; (WWF)
ST: California
IN: MLM ADV
SU:
03/22/99 07:31 EST prnewswire.com |
