DISNEY PLANNING INTERNET ENTRYWAY.

Byline: Dave McNary Daily News Staff Writer

Walt Disney Co., in a major expansion of its Internet presence, announced Monday that it will launch an easy-to-find Internet site called go.com later this year as one of the entrance hubs on the World Wide Web.

The entertainment giant, which already has 9 million people viewing its Web sites regularly, promised that its Go Network will offer fast access to Disney sites, along with search and directory services through its partnership with Web search specialist Infoseek Corp. It proclaimed that go.com will become the third-most-visited Web site behind only Yahoo! and American Online.

``It makes a lot of sense for Disney to use a name like this that's easy to remember,'' said analyst Linda Bannister of Edward Jones & Co. ``I think it's going to be very successful, given the strength of Disney's marketing muscle.''

Disney agreed in June to buy 43 percent of Infoseek for $70 million. The deal provided for $165 million in marketing support, such as ads on Disney's ABC, ESPN and other networks. Analysts believe Disney can use the worldwide appeal of its brand names and characters to attract the millions of people who have not yet become regular Internet users, particularly parents with children.

``Over time, the Internet is probably going to have a couple of major points of access, so there's still a lot of opportunity,'' said Sanford Bernstein analyst Tom Wolzien, who noted that fewer than 30 million U.S. homes have Internet access. ``It's not too late for a new player.''

Go.com will make it more likely for Web surfers to detour on to Disney's major sites such as Disney.com, ESPN Sports Zone and ABCNEWS.com, leading to further promotion of its theme parks, movies, merchandise and TV networks. ``With Go Network, we are making clear that we intend to seize this opportunity and be just a click away from consumers around the globe,'' Disney Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Eisner said in a statement.

The attraction of the Internet to media giants such as Burbank-based Disney is growing because operators of directories get to decide exactly what an Internet user initially views when entering the World Wide Web.