RCN Broadband Portal - 01/22/2003
Terra Lycos Launches Private-Label Broadband Personalization Platform For Streaming Content - RCN Teams with Lycos to Offer RCN High Speed Internet Subscribers Start Pages Based on Award-Winning My Lycos Platform
WALTHAM, Mass. - January 22, 2003 - Terra Lycos (NASDAQ: TRLY and Madrid Exchange: TRR), the largest global Internet network, today announced the deployment of a broadband private label personalization platform specifically tailored to high-speed Internet service providers (ISPs). Based on the award-winning My Lycos architecture, one of the highest-rated personalization platforms on the Web, broadband centric start pages delivering streaming content are now available to subscribers of RCN (NASDAQ: RCNC), the nation’s largest provider of bundled phone, cable and high speed Internet services.
In the first rollout of the My Lycos broadband product, users can personalize the start pages by choosing their favorite content such as news headlines, sports updates, weather, stock quotes, entertainment news and more. Located at http://rcnbroadband.my.lycos.com, RCN subscribers can view and personalize an immense library of streaming video and audio clips via co-branded media players from their start page. Other broadband features include real-time customization, dynamic content sizing, content recommendations and animated weather content.
“Personalized start pages are traditionally a portal’s most frequently-visited product, fostering customer retention and loyalty which is critical to ISPs in their hyper-competitive industry,” said Chris Bondhus, global director for personalization for Terra Lycos. “One way to retain subscribers is to meet their needs and expectations of a broadband connection by providing customizable content. Start pages can also be a much more cost efficient way for ISPs to introduce new or premium services to customers. Lycos plans to provide this private label personalized broadband platform to additional clients over the coming months.”
“We teamed up with Lycos to create a personalized broadband product because we wanted our customers to have access to very content-rich information they could easily tailor and customize to their liking,” said Pati Ross, senior vice president sales and marketing of RCN. “As broadband usage continues to grow, RCN’s new personalized broadband platform is one more example of our ongoing commitment to provide our customers with the very best technology, service and value.”
Terra Lycos’s personalized broadband platform offers ISPs of all sizes private label packages tailored to reduce customer churn and exceed subscribers’ expectations. The packages include:- Customization: ISPs have control over the appearance and substance of the broadband start page, selecting content from more than 40 different content modules, designing the page’s appearance including layout and color schemes.
- Messaging Area: ISPs can message customers within a specific location on the page enabling cross-selling or up-selling of other services, reducing costly direct marketing programs
- Co-Brandable Video Player: Provides one-click access to the latest music videos, movie trailers and financial news streams giving broadband users instant access to the best multimedia content the Web has to offer. The ISPs brand remains prominently displayed throughout the experience.
About Terra Lycos
Terra Lycos is a global Internet group with a presence in 42 countries in 19 languages, reaching 118 million unique users per month around the world. The group, which is the result of Terra Networks S.A.’s acquisition of Lycos, Inc. in October 2000, operates some of the most popular Web sites in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America, and is the largest access provider in Spain and Latin America. The Terra Lycos network of sites includes Terra in 17 countries, Lycos in 25 countries, Angelfire.com, Atrea.com, Azeler.es, Direcciona.es, Educaterra.com, Emplaza.com, Gamesville.com, HotBot.com, Ifigenia.com, Invertia.com, Lycos Zone, Maptel.com, Matchmaker.com, Quote.com, RagingBull.com, Rumbo.com, Tripod.com, Uno-e.com and Wired News (Wired.com), and others. With headquarters in Barcelona and operating centers in Madrid, Boston and elsewhere, Terra Lycos is traded on the Madrid stock exchange (TRR) and the Nasdaq electronic market (TRLY).
Contacts
Kathy O’Reilly
Terra Lycos
781-370-3454
Kathy.O’Reilly@corp.terralycos.com
Suzie Pileggi
Weber Shandwick
212-445-8170
SPileggi@webershandwick.com
