Arbitron has named VP/Marketing Bill Rose as VP/GM of its Internet division, filling the position that opened up when Greg Verdino left the firm last month, and simultaneously announced that it is changing the division's name from "Arbitron NewMedia" to "Arbitron Internet Information Services."

Rose will oversee initiatives including InfoStream, Arbitron's Webcast ratings service, and SiteScore, an online survey methodology for measuring the appeal and effectiveness of Web sites.

Rose joined Arbitron's San Francisco office in 1981, left in 1986 to work at KSMJ/KSFM/Sacramento, rejoined Arbitron's New York office, left briefly to partner with David Lebow in his Rating Point Management firm, and subsequently returned to to Arbitron, where he has been VP/Marketing/Radio Station Services for the past two years. Rose holds an MBA from NYU's Stern School of Business.

In a related story, Gulfstar Communications VP/Sales Dennis Seely rejoins Arbitron to fill Rose's previous positon as VP/Marketing/Radio Station Services. Seely has spent the past two years leading with Gulfstar, a division of AMFM. He managed Arbitron's Dallas office for three years prior to joining Gulfstar.




From yesterday's Washington Post: "While widespread closings kept workers off the roads yesterday, many ran smack into a different kind of traffic jam--the one on the Internet. With workers firing up home computers and fax machines, children Web surfing, and others using the day at home to make long calls, telecommunications systems throughout the region slowed down or didn't function at all..." Read the full story here.



BY KURT HANSON
According to a story in next week's issue of Radio Business Report, Clear Channel's Internet Group, based in Orlando and headed by SVP Jenny Sue Rhoades, has signed an agreement with SamsDirect Internet to market and sell domain name registrations with the “.cc” suffix.

"Through its radio websites and the 'Spot.cc' website, Clear Channel is opening up a variety of desired URLs that have long been taken on the .com and .net domains," Rhoads told RBR. Clear Channel Communications is test marketing the site in Orlando, Houston, Tampa, Jacksonville, Grand Rapids and Little Rock. “We will roll it out nationwide the first couple of days in February,” Rhoades said.

It will be interesting to note whether the ".cc" suffix proves particularly attractive to people who are not personally associated with Clear Channel. (Actually, the .cc suffix is assigned to the Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean.) Domain name suffixes available from other sources include .to, .md, .fm, .ro, .cx, .sh, .gs, .ms, .lt, .ac, .as, .dk, and lots of others.


One nice feature of the Spot.cc website is that if your desired domain name is unavailable, it suggests alternatives.

For example, I know that I eventually want to get an easier-to-remember URL for this newsletter. Unfortunately, "RAIN" is no longer available as a ".cc" domain -- someone in New Zealand grabbed it. But the site helpfully suggested the following alternatives, which are still available:

Interestingly, alternative names I had, in fact, considered for this newsletter before selecting "RAIN" included "CHRONOLOGICAL-SEQUENCE," "MIZZLE," and "CALFSBRAIN."

Feel free to vote for your preferred new domain name for this newsletter by sending me an e-mail here.




JagNotes.com Announces Webcasting Project
From Streaming Media News: "JagNotes.com Inc. Wednesday announced plans to Webcast its financial content through its domestic and international Web sites. The Webcasting project will be deployed in phases, the first of which will involve the delivery of reports from many of the company's U.S. commentators in streaming audio/video formats. The second phase of the project will involve the production and Webcasting of original, live financial programming that will focus on breaking financial news and market-moving information..." Read the full piece in Streaming Media News here.

RIAA sues MP3.com for Something Like $900 Zillion
CNet News article here.

Survey Finds One-Third of Retailers' Web Sites
Have No Strategic Purpose
Thirty-one percent of the Web sites of retail and consumer goods firms have no strategic purpose, Deloitte & Touche found in a benchmark research study released today on the current practices and future plans of e-Business retailers.
     Internet sales tripled in 1999, to $20 billion, according to Forrester Research. Seventeen percent of Americans shopped on the Web last year versus 7 percent in 1998. However, Internet commerce accounted for only 2 percent of total retail sales...
     Of the survey respondents who said their Web site had a strategic purpose, 33 percent cited "gaining a competitive advantage" as the purpose. Fifty-eight percent said they didn't know whether Web site sales would cannibalize sales from stores, although 38 percent thought Web commerce would drive incremental sales. (From BusinessWire. Search here.)

Strategic Media Research launches new Internet study
From All Access: "STRATEGIC MEDIA RESEARCH teams with DISCOVERY.COM to launch NETLINX, offering qualitative and quantitative data from Internet focus groups. For details, call STRATEGIC MEDIA's LOU PATRICK at (312) 726-8300." Read All Access here (registration required).

Launch Media Revenues Double In Q4, '99
Revenues were $6.6 million for the quarter and $18.3 million for the year. Q4 net loss grew from $6.3 million (74 cents per share) to $10 million (78 cents), while the net loss for 1999 widened from $24.6 million to $35.1 million. From R&R Online here (subscription required).

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