Murdoch goes titsupdotcom

Firedup.com to be snuffed out

By Tim Richardson • Get more from this author

Posted in Music and Media, 25th July 2000 13:10 GMT

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The future of News Network Ltd - the five-month old new media arm of News International - is in the balance following further shock revelations obtained by The Register.

Sources close to the company claim that all staff not involved with the online entertainment auction site, firedup.com, or the recruitment outfit, revolver.com, have either been made redundant or have walked out.

Alasdair MacLeod, MD of the failed operation, is reportedly the only person left at the company except for a handful of staff.

A leaked memo reportedly from Les Hinton, chairman of News International, reveals that the media outfit has created a new division - News Commercial Ventures (NCV) - formed by merging FiredUp.com with News International Ventures, the existing reader offer and brand extensions business.

This will be headed-up by Brett Miller, currently general manager of FiredUp.com. His deputy will be Alex Stitt, currently director of News International Ventures.

But the The Register understands that the game's up for FiredUp.com as a consumer brand and that the site will effectively be allowed to burn itself out over the coming months.

Neither MacLeod, Miller or Stitt was available for comment today. A spokeswoman for News International refused to comment. ®

Job losses at Murdochs' e-empire

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