New Media Age back issues from January 2003:
Media buyers seek end to ad metrics confusion.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Media buyers are tackling one of the biggest obstacles to the growth of Internet advertising with an initiative to remove the discrepancies between ad-serving statistics they produce and those of media owners. The digital marketing group (DMG) of the Institute of Practitioners ...
MMS freed from network limits.(Now Wireless)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... UK mobile subscribers can send MMS messages to users on any other network following the launch of NowMMS from Now Wireless. The service is provided free, supported by advertising. In return for free inter-operator MMS connectivity, subscribers agree to receive a limited number ...
ISPs face huge fees with arrival of new legislation.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... The UK ISP industry is bracing itself for a bill of several million pounds as a result of the communications regime which will come into effect this summer. At present the ISP industry is not subject to specific regulation, although ISPs that provide telecoms services have had ...
E-tail set for shake up with streamed shop assistants.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... The face of online shopping could be given a shake-up thanks to new technology that enables customers to receive a live streamed personal shopping assistant on their browser. Interactive agency Humansand-machines has signed a deal with Macromedia to develop services for the new ...
3 launches first TV and cinema marketing push.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... UK operator 3 tomorrow starts its first TV and cinema ads, despite still being unable to set a launch date. The multi-million pound push, with the tag line 'You aren't watching TV' positions video as the core consumer offering of the 3G service. The campaign, ...
Commission to aid London's Web creative sectors.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... The London interactive industry has been given a boost by a special commission established by the Mayor of London, with a brief of focusing on the creative industries in the capital. Aboard of fifteen executives will lead the Commission on the Creative Industries. Yahoo! UK MD ...
BT unveils plans for paid-for online education resource.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... BT has revealed plans to launch its first paid-for education service, BT Learning Centre, next month. The new service, which comes under the auspices of BT Retail's New Ventures division, also home to Dotmusic and Gamesdomain, is being positioned as the first comprehensive home ...
Monstermob and Jester plan mobile gaming venture.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Mobile content distributor Monstermob has formed a partnership with games publisher Jester Interactive in order to launch mobile versions of Commodore gaming hits. The firm has also boosted its distribution channels via content deals with Phone Logistics and Tomo. ...
DCMS set to approve BBC online education scheme.(Department for Culture Media and Sport)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Speculation is rife that the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) will this week approve the BBC's digital curriculum plans. News reports at the weekend suggested that the DCMS was preparing to act at the same time as the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) ...
Thomas Cook arrives on broadband.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Travel firm Thomas Cook has become the first high street chain to launch a dedicated broadband channel. Thomas Cook Broadband aims to support Thomas Cook's dTV presence and will let viewers watch 300 clips of a number of destinations. The site was built by Thomas ...
Easycar to launch first European online ads. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Online car rental company Easycar.com is launching its first ever Internet advertising push across Europe. The campaign follows the appointment of former eBay UK manager, Jennifer Mowat, to the role of Easycar's commercial director. After building the UK arm of the online auctioneer up ...
Coca-Cola inks sponsor deal for Ant & Dec TV show and site. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Coca-Cola has struck a deal with ITV to sponsor the second series and official Web site of Ant & Dec's new show, Saturday Night Takeaway. The agreement covers ...
Government begins campaign to warn of online paedophiles. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... The Government has launched its first TV advertising to highlight the possible dangers of online paedophile activity. The [pounds sterling]1m advertising campaign, which was first revealed by NMA in November (28 November 2002) will run ...
AOP expands membership with ANM and Independent Digital. (In Brief).(Association of Online Publishers, Associated New Media)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... The Association of Online Publishers (AOP) has strengthened its membership with the addition of Associated New Media (ANM) and Independent Digital to its board. The organisation was formed last July and grew out of the old ...
Loot.com adds adult-only services to offering. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Loot.com, the online arm of the classified advertising newspaper giant, has launched a new section covering adult services including escort agencies, adult Web sites and saunas and massage parlours. The move has come as a result of the newspaper reclassifying ...
Freeserve launches bingo service with Victor Chandler. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Freeserve has continued its online gaming drive with the launch of a bingo service in partnership with Victor Chandler. The launch of the ...
Tribal DDB designs new toy sites for Hasbro. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Toy manufacturer Hasbro has launched two Web sites, for Action Man and a new game called ProJaX. Both were created by digital marketing agency Tribal DDB. The ...
New Year texting on the up. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Over 100m text messages were sent on New Year's Day, according to the Mobile Data ...
Flextech puts iTV at heart of broadcasting strategy.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Digital TV broadcaster Flextech has unveiled a number of revenue-generating initiatives which will put iTV at the heart of its broadcasting strategy for most of its major channels. Flextech already has a major iTV interest with its games channel Challenge, but now it's preparing ...
W3C usability standards put developers to the test.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Web developers are under renewed pressure to make Web sites accessible following the acceptance by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) of a new accessibility standard. The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (UAAG 1.0), written as part of the Web Accessibility Initiative and ...
MMTV raises over [pounds sterling]700,000.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Multimedia Television, the iTV content and solutions company, has raised over [euro]1m ([pounds sterling]700,000). The company operates two subsidiaries: the iTV design and build company MMTV and the digital recruitment TV channel The Job Channel. Michael Deeny, chairman of ...
Habbo and BT in broadband deal.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Habbo Hotel, the chat and games environment for teenagers, has signed a deal with BT that includes marketing the telco's broadband products as it moves to develop its own broadband services. BT is listing Habbo Hotel as a partner on its btbroadbandstart.com site, which functions ...
HSBC pilots plan to handle e-tailers' anti-fraud systems.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... HSBC is launching a one-stop shop to tackle online fraud which will see e-tailers outsourcing their antifraud systems to the bank. The system is being pilot tested in the UK at the moment and will place the bank between the retailers on one hand and schemes such as Verified by ...
First Direct trials 3D Internet agent.(Cara 3D interactive animation)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... First Direct, the Internet and phone bank, has launched an interactive online agent to guide users through complex financial products. The agent, named Cara, is a 3D interactive animation who moves, talks and gestures as she responds to users' questions. She's initially being ...
Sun Online to launch Web version of racing game.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... The Sun Online is continuing its drive for revenues from online by launching its 'King of the Punters' fantasy horseracing game online for the first time. The game, which has been running in the newspaper since 1995, is the first of a number of games that the paper's online arm ...
Durlacher sells off further tech shares.(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Investment bank Durlacher has continued its policy of offloading its technology holdings by selling most of its shares in kVault Software at a significant premium. This follows the sale last month of its stakes in online share dealing service NothingVentured and City news ...
Diary.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
Jan 09, 2003 ... 20 January 2003 Game On: Capturing the New Consumer Pound in UK Gaming and Leisure London +44(0)20 7713 0302 ateonline.co.uk/conferences 20-22 January 2003 Wireless Java Implementation Strategies London ...
Boursot Wines delays results as it awaits announcement. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Boursot Wines, the on and offline wine retailer, has delayed the release of its results and had its shares suspended on Ofex ahead of an expected fundraising ...
Intellexis raises [pounds sterling]500,000 in new finance for training. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Online financial training firm Intellexis has secured [pounds sterling]500,000 in new finance. The company has also said it's still committed to the US market, despite the resignation late last year of Bob Gulick, who ...
Logica and CMG complete merger at close of 2002. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... IT and wireless services firms Logica and CMG have completed their merger, with the new company officially launched on 30 December 2002. The combined group is called LogicaCMG, and its shares are traded on ...
Hot Group directors pick up 16% of new shares. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Directors of Hot Group, the AIM-listed recruitment firm, have picked up almost 16% of the shares sold in its recent placing. The company, which operates the Jobtrack and Jobsearch Web sites, was hoping to raise [pounds sterling]1.25m through the placing but in the end sold 5.7m shares at ...
Media Square buys up Fi System UK for [pounds sterling]200,000. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Fi System, the UK arm of the French Web agency of the same name, has been bought by marketing communications agency Media Square for [pounds sterling]200,000. The acquisition follows the decision by the French parent company to pull out of the UK market. The deal includes both ...
Anystream raises further [pounds sterling]7m in third funding round. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Anystream, a streaming software provider, has raised a further $11m ([pounds sterling]6.9m) in its third-round of funding. The company's software is used by several of the UK's largest media companies, including BSkyB, which uses it to post football highlights online. Other ...
Splashpower secures fresh backing. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Splashpower, a start-up which has developed technology to allow wireless recharging of mobile devices, has raised a fresh round of venture capital finance. The money came from Pall Mall Technology Ventures, a fund based in Splashpower's home town of Cambridge. The amount of ...
Share placing for Intelligent Environments. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Intelligent Environments, the AIM-listed credit card software firm, has raised [pounds sterling]230,000 though a placing of new shares. The shares were sold to its chairman Olive Richards and investment bank Singer & Friedlander. The 6.6m shares were sold at 3.5p each, with ...
Imagestate sees losses of [pounds sterling]22.1m. (Finance).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Imagestate, the AIM-listed digital stock photography company, made a loss of more than [pounds sterling]22.1m last year in what it admitted was a "disappointing" set of results. The main problem for the company is in the US and it says it's taking remedial action there to try ...
Market watch.(Industry Overview)
Jan 09, 2003; ... It's been a fairly subdued time for the markets, with investors taking a while to get back into gear following the Christmas and New Year break. However, several large acquisitions in the final weeks of last year, with the likes of AvantGo and uDate picked up by US firms, could point to ...
Essential reading for the individual. (Investor Speak).(Column)
Jan 09, 2003; ... If your Christmas was anything like mine you received a lot of books as presents. This caused me to reflect on books that have changed my life, and how many of them I reread. With the 24 hours that most managers and entrepreneurs have, they have limited ability to draw on information ...
Eckoh to move into iTV with interactive response system. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Eckoh Technologies, the speech application developer that emerged from 365 Corporation, is to make its first foray into iTV by offering a one-stop response service to broadcasters and content owners. In a bid to cash in on the booming multi-channel environment in which ...
SecureAttachment and Veridis merge delivery services. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Digital rights and content delivery firm SecureAttachment has signed a deal with clearing technology and services company Veridis to integrate its service into Veridis's ICP SafeMail service. The tie-up between the companies aims to create a secure distribution chain for digital ...
Jobserve launches SMS alerts callback service. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Recruitment portal Jobserve is launching an SMS alerts service inviting users to call back to listen to the details of vacant posts. Subscribers will receive an SMS with a phone number to call and a unique job ID number. When they call, they are asked to key in the ID ...
Comverse launches developers' kit. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... SMS technology provider Comverse has launched its first developers' kit in a bid to take advantage of the MMS messaging boom. The software developers' kit will enable firms to build MMS applications that run with other mobile standards, send MMS messages and preview messages on ...
Digital Bridges to supply Sky SMS and Java mobile games. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Sky has signed Digital Bridges to supply SMS and Java mobile games to its Sky Active ...
Adobe launches digital camera-focused image tools. (Technology).(Photoshop Album)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Adobe has launched its latest digital picture software in a bid to cash in on the burgeoning digital camera market. Photoshop Album, which ...
Telecom One and Supanet to roll out mobile content range. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Wireless services provider Telecom One has partnered with ISP Supanet to provide users with a range of mobile content. As part of the deal, Supanet visitors will be able to ...
Thus waives connection fee for Demon broadband. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Telecom giant Thus has revealed that it'll waive the connection fee to its ISP Demon's entire broadband portfolio for at least the next three months. The promotion will cover both Demon's residential and business packages and could see consumers saving up to [pounds sterling]90 on ...
Softwrap teams with Altnet to distribute wrapped content. (Technology).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Digital rights specialist Softwrap has partnered with P2P digital content network Altnet to enable it to distribute its wrapped content to global Web users. Altnet's TopSearch will enable ...
Rubus to act as consultant to Blackwell Publishing. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Blackwell Publishing, the journal publisher, has appointed technical agency Rubus to advise on the design and implementation of a more efficient journal production and content management process. Rubus, acting as a consultant, ...
Framfab to develop adult-oriented sites for Kellogg's. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Internet consultancy Framfab has expanded its collaboration with breakfast cereal manufacturer Kellogg's. Framfab has been commissioned to design and develop an online platform for ...
Black Pig site to be included in Virtual Teacher's Centre. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Web design agency Black Pig has had one of its Web sites included in the Government's National Grid for Learning (NGfL) Virtual Teacher's Centre (VTC). The As Cedric site provides resources on consumer education for ...
Agency wins.(GR/DD)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Graphic and interactive design consultancy GR/DD has been appointed following a two-way pitch to create a Web site for Fountain Studios, the TV studio that hosted Pop Idol, Winning Lines and The Kumars at Number ...
Ogilvy develops SMS tool in multi-channel approach. (Agencies).(SMS Manager)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Advertising agency Ogilvy has made its first foray into SMS marketing as part of a new multi-channel drive across the group. It has developed an SMS management tool in-house which will enable it to send SMS marketing messages on behalf of its clients, which include BT, Unilever ...
Modem Media takes on De Kare-Silver as Euro MD. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Full service marketing agency Modem Media has appointed the former PA Consulting head of e-business as its new European MD. Michael de Kare-Silver has joined the agency, filling the role vacated by Tim Sexton in June last year. De Kare-Silver has been brought in to strengthen ...
Reading Room designs Energy Saving Trust site. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Web development agency Reading Room has completed work on a new site for the Energy Saving Trust to encourage people to save energy. The site, which links from the main saveenergy.co.uk Web site, features a series of pledges people can make to improve their conservation of ...
2Cs starts new year with new clients. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... London-based Web agency 2Cs has picked up two new clients this year. It has been appointed by Binatone Telecom to handle all aspects of its design communication activity, including brand management and Web site development. 199 Knightsbridge Development, which is the ...
Virgin.net waives [pounds sterling]40 sign-up fee for new broadband users. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... ISP Virgin.net has dropped its [pounds sterling]39.99 activation fee for all customers who sign up to its broadband service between 10 January and 31 March. Peter Tuomey, Virgin.net sales and marketing director, said, "We were the first and are still the only top-5 ISP ...
Oxy renews Mykindaplace sponsorship deal. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... GlaxoSmithKline consumer brand Oxy has renewed its marketing partnership deal with teen girl portal Mykindaplace.com for another year. The six-figure deal, brokered by Media.com, includes sponsorship of the site's Showbiz ...
Outrider runs push for Talkster audio e-card service. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Agency Outrider is running an online media push to promote an audio-enabled e-card service from provider Talkster set to launch in the UK, Belgium, France and Holland. At voicepostoffice.co.uk users can attach voice messages to e-cards by ...
Virgin hosts microsite for 'Back to the Future' DVD launch. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... Universal Pictures is promoting its Back to the Future trilogy DVD set on portal Virgin.net. Agency New Media Maze brokered the deal, which includes a Virgin-hosted microsite, linked from the home page and ...
Travel sites up marketing over busy new year period. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003; ... The UK's leading travel sites are find-tuning their biggest cross-media ad campaigns of 2003 in a bid to capture customers in one of the year's busiest booking periods. Expedia.co.uk is launching a multi-million-pound campaign this week to push what it claims is its biggest ever ...
Columbia puts alternative rich-media formats to test. (Marketing).(Columbia TriStar)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Film distributor Columbia TriStar is contrasting the effectiveness of Eye Wonder online video with Eye-blaster animated ad formats as part of its campaign to promote the film I Spy, released on 24 January. It'll run two virtually separate online campaigns from 13 January. One is ...
Airlock to push FlyFrames after Ford ad success. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Agency The Airlock is planning fresh campaigns with its new 'FlyFrames' format, after a successful debut execution with the online push for the Ford Fusion. The FlyFrames format, based on Airlock's proprietary AdShadow rich-media infrastructure, is a Flash layer that sits on the ...
uDate plans branding events for 2003. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... Online dating service uDate.com will kick-start its 2003 offline branding with a line-up of 12 UK events. The first will be a Valentine's Day party in Nottingham. Other events will be in Manchester and London. Global communications VP Toby Rowland said, "We need a ...
Human rights group attacks travel site support of Burma. (International).(Burma Campaign UK)
Jan 09, 2003; ... A human rights group has accused Iglu.com and several other travel sites of having "blood on their hands" and helping the Burmese military regime stay in power. UK consumers are being urged to press these companies by Burma Campaign UK, a London-based human rights group, to cut ...
US digital content buying levels double during 2002. (International).(Online Publishers Association report)(Brief Article)
Jan 09, 2003 ... The number of people paying for digital content in the US doubled to nearly 15m in the year to Q3 2002, according to new research from The Online Publishers Association. The study, carried out by ComScore Networks, also showed that the US market for paid online content grew to ...