|
|
Apparently no one really liked those butterflies. For the second straight quarter, Microsoft’s MSN internet service recorded a decline in subscribers. The dip comes six months after the debut of MSN’s newest service last fall, which bowed with a $300 million advertising campaign centered on those omnipresent butterflies. MSN lost 300,000 subscribers during the first quarter, dropping its base to 8.7 million, a distant second behind service leader America Online. In January MSN decided to change its focus to a bring-your-own access product much like the one AOL is currently hawking for broadband, giving subscribers all the MSN extras but allowing them to use broadband or cheaper dial-up services. Microsoft blamed part of the churn on users who signed up under a multi-year rebate plan used to buy computers at offline retailers. While AOL and MSN bled subscribers during first quarter, leading discount internet service provider United Online showed a growth during fourth quarter.
Hey ball fans, pay for a day
with Jose
Want to spend the day with disgraced former major league star Jose Canseco?
Are you willing to pay for the privilege? The former Bash Brother put
himself up for auction on his web site, www.JoseCanseco.com,
hoping to raise some much-needed money. It was unclear if the minimum bid
of $2,500 had been met by the weekend deadline; bidding numbers were not
released. The winning bidder will have to stay close to Jose’s home.
Canseco, you see, is under house arrest in south Florida for the next two
years stemming from his part in a nightclub brawl. He was released from
jail March 17. But there are plenty of things to do at Canseco’s house.
He suggests a private power hitting lesson, martial arts instruction, a
one-on-one workout and a post-workout cookout by the pool. Bid enough and
Canseco may even wear a chef’s hat. The six-time all-star hit 462 home
runs in his career, No. 26 on the all-time list. He retired last year.
Gambling via cell, all the
rage in Europe
As if gambling weren’t addictive enough, European companies are making it
easy, too. The hot trend overseas is games of chance via cell phone,
otherwise known as “m-gambling.” Lottery tickets now can be bought
through mobile phone in the Netherlands, Austria, Britain, Germany and
Sweden. It’s even easier to bet on games or enter sweepstakes by phone.
The trend is starting to drift into Asia, too, where similar opportunities
are being explored. It’s easy to play. For the contests, for example,
players simply send a text message to the appropriate phone number, for
which they may be charged a fee. Ways of winning vary. For some contests,
you must be caller No. X, sort of like a radio station giveaway.
Traditional lotteries have been slumping in recent years in many European
countries. But m-gambling has attracted a new generation of anonymous
users, generating an estimated $50 million this year and expected to grow
next year.
DoubleClick: We're doing
better than expected
DoubleClick hopes to achieve its first full year of profitability based on
first quarter results revealed yesterday. Revenues were at $60.1 million,
although that did represent a 28.2 percent year-over-year decline based on
divestitures from 2002. Operating expenses declined by more than 30
percent year over year. DoubleClick raised its full-year earnings
prediction based on the numbers. It expects second quarter revenues to be
between $60 million and $63 million
April 21, 2003© 2003 Media Life
Send to a
Friend| Printer-Friendly Version
Cover Page | Contact
Us