Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/1999/09/20/net_finance_news_28_sept/

Net Finance News: 2-8 Sept 1999

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By Team Register

Posted in On-Prem, 20th September 1999 00:26 GMT

8 Sept 1999BT Lame Brain spills 0800 beans
Concentric buys ITG for £146 million

Frozen food supermarket chain Iceland is to offer Net-based home shopping from October 4 in an attempt to improve its trading position. The service will be free of charge -- unlike other schemes such as Tescos which make consumers pay for delivery -- although the minimum order for iced produce is £40


The new economy of Information Technology is to get its own investment fund. The fund, to be based in Guernsey, will be run by Investec Guiness Flight -- the global asset management company. Designed to track 'new blue chip' companies, it will track the 40 companies on the Wired Index, set up last year by US publication,

Wired Magazine

. The key areas of interest are technology, networks, communication and information. The inclusion of companies is not dependent on industrial muscle, rather the intellectual strength is the key factor. The list already includes Dell, Cisco, Microsoft, Nokia, Yahoo! and Cable & Wireless.


Online community FortuneCity.com has acquired Notrix.de and V3/go.to, two of the world's largest Internet re-direct services for an undisclosed sum. Both companies provide specific and personalised alternatives to Web users with complicated Internet addresses.


Net portal Lycos is to buy Quote.com for $78.3 million in a bid to appeal to those users who like to dabble in online stocks and shares. The deal to buy the online provider of stock-data and financial information "fills a product void with a tremendously successful offering," said Lycos CE Robert Davis.


7 Sept 1999

PhoneLink plc has launch its Tel-Me Global Traveller Internet travel service for people on the move. Customers who use the Global Traveller service to book their trips service will earn "E-miles" which can then be used to obtain discounts on hotels, holiday packages and flights.


Online recruitment company RexOnline plc has entered into a conditional contract with an unnamed party to acquire the search and selection service Jobtrack Limited. The deal currently on the table includes the payment of £30,000, the issue of 75,000 fully paid ordinary shares in the company and the issue of warrants to acquire a further 500,000 ordinary shares which can be exercised at 82.5p per share.


SportsLine Europe Ltd has set up a French language Web site and a rugby sports site as part of an agreement with the official Rugby World Cup site. SportsLine USA, which own 80 percent of SportsLine Europe, plans to invest around $50 million in the scheme, according to

Bloomberg

.


One of Germany's biggest IPOs of the year is set to send investors into a frenzy after Entrium Direct Bankers AG said it would be offering investors their first chance to buy shares in a German online bank. Entrium hopes to raise $225 million although this is believed to be at the top end of the scale. The online service offers banking, discount brokerage and investment services over the telephone and Internet, said

Bloomberg

Freeserve has launched its own branded instant messaging (IM) service. Powered by Tribal Voice's PowWow technology service Freeserve Communicator can be used with other IM platforms, including AOL's Instant Messenger and Microsoft's MSN Messenger Service.


Harrods looks overseas for online custom
Argos welshes on three quid TV Net 'offer'
AOL UK erects sight screen for kids' site
Psion teams up with LineOne for Net assault
6 Sept 1999

Trendy shoe retailer Pied a Terre and home owners' emporium Habitat are to launch their own virtual ISPs with a little bit of help from Virgin Net. The high street retailers will hand out CDs containing software for the subscription-free service to their label-conscious customers. Although the front end is branded those who sign up will effectively end up with a Virgin Net e-mail address and account.


Software-to-books e-tailer Buy.com is set to open up its operation in Britain before planning a $2 billion IPO on Wall Street later this autumn. According to the

Sunday Times

Buy.com's move into the British market is likely to be funded by the new media VC outfit Epartners, which itself is backed by News Corporation and Japanese investment house Softbank.


Amazon.com's chief logistics officer has walked out and returned to his Arkansas home after only a year at the online bookstore. Although the shock resignation may cause a few mumblings among onlookers Jimmy Wright said that there was nothing to get all worked up about. In an interview with

Bloomberg

he said he he'd achieved what he'd set out to do and wanted to spend more time with his wife.


One of Britain's biggest independent toyshops is to launch a Web site in time for the lucrative run-up to Christmas. Bicester-based Toyzone is expected to unveil it's new service later this month, according to the

Sunday Times

, going head-to-head with e-Toys, Toys-R-Us, Hamleys and every other retailer of kids' things.


Virgin goes tits up into Labor (Day)
Dabs Direct launches Playdirect.com
OECD seeks to protect online shoppers
3 Sept 1999

365 Corporation is gunning for a November IPO, which would value the sports/entertainment web company at £300m -£500m. The loss-making British company expects revenues of 20m this year and £50m next year, according to the

FT

. Investors include Durlacher, which bought its 11 per cent stake for £1.5 million., Schroders and Demon founder Clff Stanford. The management team control 20 per cent of the company. 365 operates music, football, cricket and rugby websites and claims a combined readership of 250,000 regular daily users.

2 Sept 1999BBC free ISP blasted for stifling market development
Jewish Web site values teen entrepreneur at millions
UK e-commerce envoy coming RSN
Deutsche Bank, Nokia offer WAP banking
Silver surfers ride the wave of e-commerce