Black Sun Interactive, ADSmart, and Planet Direct join forces in pioneering advertising in online communities; The Black & Decker Dustbuster SpokesBot revolutionizes advertising in online communities.SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 24, 1997--Today Black Sun Interactive, a leading provider of products for building online communities, ADSmart Corporation, creator of the first fully automated system to manage the online advertising process, and Planet Direct, creator of a new consumer Internet service, announced a partnership to deliver the SpokesBot, an innovative advertising solution for online communities. The SpokesBot integrates advertising into the community dialogue, by providing relevant information and the opportunity for the consumer to interact with the advertiser. This solution allows for a more targeted and interactive advertising campaign, enhancing the value proposition for both the consumer and advertiser, converting the community into a revenue generating site. "Together we demonstrate the economic viability of communities," said Franz Buchenberger, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Black Sun Interactive. "Interactive media has paved pave tr.v. paved, pav·ing, paves 1. To cover with a pavement. 2. To cover uniformly, as if with pavement. 3. To be or compose the pavement of. the way for a new, more effective targeting model based on the user's behavior and interest. The SpokesBot is one in a series of innovations from Black Sun and ADSmart that will deliver the power of interactive media to advertisers." Through branded chat rooms and theme communities, advertisers have access to a focused group of users. Advertisers have been reluctant to advertise in other vendor's chat systems because customers are often too focused on chatting and do not notice the ads placed outside the chat window. By integrating the advertiser's message into the chat window and having an animated character in the 3D world, the SpokesBot addresses this concern. With the addition of the SpokesBot advertisers can create animated interactive characters that invite consumer participation and deliver targeted messages. The customer asks the character questions and listens to entertaining scripts, learning more about both the product and the company all via the chat window of the program. And they can learn about the product without ever leaving the online community. "Online communities, like Planet Direct, are an excellent value for advertisers-people involved in online communities are active web participants who voice opinions on topics they truly care about. Communities attract people with similar interests and activities," said Martin Lowrie, president of ADSmart, "and our goal is to hone in precisely on customers most likely to be interested and receptive to advertisements in a community environment." Black Sun Interactive has developed a Community Bill of Rights for all SpokesBots in public communities. The Bill of Rights provides guidelines for the advertisers, ensuring that their SpokesBot act in a courteous cour·te·ous adj. Characterized by gracious consideration toward others. See Synonyms at polite. [Middle English corteis, courtly, from Old French, from cort, court; see and friendly manner. Since the SpokesBot is integrated into the ADSmart system, advertisers can rotate, track, and evaluate the efficacy of these new innovative advertisements in both a 2D and a 3D online community just as they can with standard banner ads A graphic image used on Web sites to advertise a product or service. Banner ads come in numerous sizes, but are often rectangles 460 pixels wide by 60 pixels high. Also 460 x 55 and 392 x 72 sizes are commonly used. . These advertisements are targeted based on the topic of the chat session (for example an interview with a golf celebrity would be targeted to golfers). Through ADSmart's True Targeting Planner, advertisers and their agencies will have online access to a myriad of chat advertising opportunities. Partners Planet Direct, a partner in this revolutionary advertising solution, is the first customer to use the SpokesBot in their personal Internet service. Planet Direct developed "Dusty the Dustbuster SpokesBot" for their partner, Black & Decker, to demonstrate the value of integrated and interactive advertising. SpokesBot Dusty is an engaging 3D robot that politely introduces himself to curious visitors offering information about the Black & Decker Dustbuster SpokesBot. "We are excited to be at the forefront of this new technology which will deliver a more compelling and useful advertising experience to our customers," said Hans G. Hawrysz, president and CEO of Planet Direct. "The interaction between the SpokesBot and the consumer is a pioneering step for the advertising industry." "We are happy to be pioneers in this joint effort to push the boundaries of marketing on the Internet. The Black and Decker Dustbuster Spokesbot is a new and exciting advertising concept," said Robert Goergen, Account Supervisor at McCann Interactive, representing Black & Decker. "We are enthusiastic to test "Dusty" the Spokesbot in an online community and anticipate positive results." About Black Sun Interactive, Inc. Black Sun Interactive, based in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden and Munich, is the leading provider of open standards-based products for building online communities and collaborative environments. Black Sun Interactive, co-author co·au·thor or co-au·thor n. A collaborating or joint author. tr.v. co·au·thored, co·au·thor·ing, co·au·thors To be a collaborating or joint author of: "He and a colleague . . . of Living Worlds, an emerging standard for online communities, is fully compliant with existing open standards Specifications for hardware and software that are developed by a standards organization or a consortium involved in supporting a standard. Available to the public for developing compliant products, open standards imply "open systems;" that an existing component in a system can be replaced such as HTML HTML in full HyperText Markup Language Markup language derived from SGML that is used to prepare hypertext documents. Relatively easy for nonprogrammers to master, HTML is the language used for documents on the World Wide Web. , VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) A 3D graphics language used on the Web. After downloading a VRML page, its contents can be viewed, rotated and manipulated. Simulated rooms can be "walked into." The VRML viewer is launched from within the Web browser. , and Java. Founded in 1995, Black Sun delivers an extensible and scaleable platform for running online communities. The Black Sun Community Server and the Passport plug-in transform Web sites into 2-D and 3-D communities where people can meet and interact in real-time. About ADSmart Corporation ADSmart Corporation provides the next generation interactive service for planning, buying, and analyzing Internet advertising Delivering ads to Internet users via Web sites, e-mail, ad-supported software and Internet-enabled cellphones. Also called an "ad network," Internet advertising organizations act as a middleman between the advertiser and the Web sites and software publishers that display the ads. campaigns that is fully automated. ADSmart is committed to enable advertisers, advertising agencies and Web publishers to capitalize on Cap´i`tal`ize on` v. t. 1. To turn (an opportunity) to one's advantage; to take advantage of (a situation); to profit from; as, to capitalize on an opponent's mistakes s>. the Internet as an emerging mainstream advertising medium through its technol advertising campaigns. ADSmart is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CMG CMG Coastal & Marine Geology (USGS) CMG Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (stock symbol) CMG Companion (of the Order Of) St Michael and St George CMG Computer Measurement Group Information Services See Information Systems. (Nasdaq: CMGI CMGI Commonly Maintained Grounds Infrastructures CMGI College Marketing Group Information (Services) ), a leader in technology-based direct marketing services. ADS technology and content partners. The Planet Direct service is available to the subscribers of ISPs across the country. The service is free to ISPs, and free to their customers. Planet Direct integrates a powerful and easy-to-utext based on where they live. Members can liv e 1997, the company announced that its highly pived from ISP (1) See in-system programmable. (2) (Internet Service Provider) An organization that provides access to the Internet. Connection to the user is provided via dial-up, ISDN, cable, DSL and T1/T3 lines. shared local and national advertising as well as additional premium services. Planet Direct is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CMG Information Services (Nasdaq: CMGI), a leader in technology-based direct marketing services. Planet Direct is headquartered in Wilmington, Mass. Black Sun Interactive, Black Sun Passport, Black Sun Community Server, and SpokesBot are trademarks of Black Sun Interactive. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ADSmart, ADSmart Corporation, ADSmart.net, and CMG are all trademarks or service marks of CMG Information Services. -0- Participating Companies: Black Sun Interactive http://www.blacksun.com ADSmart Corporation http://www.adsmart.net Planet Direct http://www.planetdirect.com Black & Decker http://www.blackanddecker.com CONTACT: Black Sun Interactive Deborah Johnson, 415/273-7011 deborah@blacksun.com com or NICS See Newly Industrialized Countries. INTERACTIVE/MULTIMEDIA/INTERNET PRODUCT REPEATS: New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of 212-752-9600 or 800-221-2462; Boston 617-236-4266 or |
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