REALNETWORKS PITCHES BASEBALL TO MOBILE PHONES
Baseball fans living outside their home areas now will be able to listen to games by dialing them up on their cell phones. RealNetworks Inc. said it has reached a deal with Major League baseball to broadcast games on mobile phones. The service will deliver live audio broadcasts of baseball games to AT&T Wireless Services Inc.'s mobile network, essentially allowing sports fans to dial up and listen live to any game from anywhere. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. RealNetworks carries the games over the Internet, while AT&T Wireless delivers game audio to its wireless customers. The service, which also is available on compatible PDAs, includes short text messages of game times and can be managed through voice commands such as: "Change game -- Seattle Mariners," RealNetworks said.
SEC PROBING INTERNET-BASED FIRM, NEXTCARD
The failed Internet credit card issuer, NextCard Inc. has disclosed that a federal investigation into its collapse has begun. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, NextCard also disclosed Chief Executive John Hasman had resigned. In its filing, the San Francisco company said it intends to cooperate with the SEC. The company did not provide details of the investigation other than noting it had received a subpoena to produce certain documents. NextCard's credit card issuing bank was closed in February by the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was appointed receiver. The FDIC estimates the failure of NextCard's bank could cost the public deposit insurance program more than $300 million. At one point, NextCard had distributed more than 1 million credit cards.
'AMERICAN IDOL' WEB SITE SEES SURGE IN TRAFFIC
Traffic to Fox Television's "American Idol" Web site, idolonfox.msn.com, skyrocketed during the finale of the twice-weekly TV series, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. The Internet audience measurement service said traffic to the site nearly tripled last Tuesday to 241,000 visitors from 82,000 a week earlier. Traffic to the site peaked on Wednesday night with 308,000 unique visitors, compared with 158,000 a week earlier. "'American Idol' pushed the reality show one step further with its interactivity, relying on American viewers to vote and decide the fate of their favorite contestant," said Carolyn Clark, Internet analysts with Nielsen//NetRatings. "The Web site provided an additional medium for fans of the show, offering clips of performances, photos of the contestants and most recently, an opportunity to chat with the winner, Kelly Clarkson."
AMAZON, OFFICE DEPOT OPEN WEB STORE
Amazon.com Inc. has opened a store on its Web site with products from Office Depot Inc. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The companies said the site will offer more than 50,000 items, including technology products and home office furniture, in addition to the office-related products already available at Amazon.com. There is a shared "checkout" for all merchandise, whether purchased from Amazon.com or Office Depot, the companies said. Under the terms of the multi-year agreement, Amazon.com will process customer transactions while Office depot manages inventory and product fulfillment of merchandise through their national network or distribution centers. Also, Office Depot will provide all customer service associated with Office Depot product orders placed on Amazon.com, while Amazon.com will provide customer service related to Web site functionality and credit card transactions, the companies said.
RED CROSS, 3 INTERNET COMPANIES LAUNCH BLOOD DRIVE
Three Internet companies are joining the American Red Cross in a month-long campaign to encourage people to give blood. Microsoft, Yahoo! and America Online will take part in the "Together, We Can Save a Life" campaign, the Red Cross said. The goal is to increase awareness of the need to donate blood on a regular basis. Blood has a limited shelf life and is always needed. The Red Cross said blood shortages are chronic, especially during holidays in the summer and winter. "The World Wide Web has demonstrated that information can be transmitted across America within seconds -- and every two seconds someone in America needs a blood transfusion," said Marsha Johnson Evans, president of the American Red Cross. Evans added the goal of the campaign is to increase awareness about the importance of giving blood "now and for a lifetime."
INTERNET FAVORED BY YOUNG FOR POLITICS
People ages 15 to 24 are 30 times more likely to use the Internet for political activity than people over 64, according to a new survey by the Economic and Social Research Council in England. "Politicians are worried about the low turnout and supposed political apathy among young people," said Stephen Ward, who conducted the survey. "This research should be studied closely by parties and pressure groups keen to engage them with politics." The study also found Internet users are 22 percent more likely to engage in political discussion and 8 percent more likely to contact political figures than non-net users. When political e-mail is sent by friends, only 10 percent ignored them, compared to 29 percent who would skip impersonal "spam" political e-mail, the survey said. The Economic and Social Research Council receives most of its funding from the national government in England.
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