Bits and Bytes for April 6, 2004
Digital Impact explores non-e-mail avenues; Mamma.com's stock fluctuations draw investigation; Kill Bill II debuts online; IAB unveils new ad standards; and Advertising.com prepares for IPO.
Digital Impact to Develop Offerings Beyond E-Mail
E-mail marketing player Digital Impact isn’t doing as well as it has expected the past few months, and it will look beyond its core email business for new growth.
The company warned it will post a $0.03- to $0.02-per-share loss in the fiscal fourth quarter, bringing in revenues of between $10 million and $10.5 million. Previously, the company had forecast revenues of between $10.5 million and $11 million.
The company says it didn’t bring in as much revenue as it had anticipated because sales cycles are lengthening. In addition, Digital Impact saw a greater than expected reduction in email volume.
“While we are disappointed with the fiscal fourth quarter’s results, we are optimistic about the future as we selectively invest in our business to develop new offerings beyond our core email business,” said William Park, CEO of Digital Impact.
The company will release final results for the quarter after the close of regular trading on April 27.
Mamma.com Under Investigation
Mamma.com, which has seen its stock gyrate wildly in recent weeks, says it’s the subject of an informal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company says the agency’s inquiry shouldn’t be construed as an indication that any violation of the law has occurred.
Mamma.com says it’s confident it has complied with accounting and regulatory requirements and is cooperating with the SEC’s inquiry.
“The company is not aware of any non-public information that might bear upon the recent activity in the market for the company’s common stock,” said David Goldman, executive chairman of Mamma.com.
Miramax Releases “Kill Bill Vol. 2” Trailer Online
Miramax Pictures Tuesday released the trailer for “Kill Bill Vol. 2” online — on Yahoo, AOL, MSN, and Quicktime.com — simultaneously with its release on television’s Entertainment Tonight.
The film, the final installment of a two-part series, was directed by Quentin Tarantino and stars Uma Thurman, Michael Madsen, Darryl Hannah and David Carradine. It’s being released in theaters nationwide on April 16.
IAB Issues Guidelines for Half-Page Units
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has written a standard specification for the half-page advertising unit.
The IAB recommends a 300 by 600 pixel unit as the industry standard, with file sizes of 30K for .GIFs and .JPGs and 40K for Flash. CBS.com, CNET Networks, CondeNet, Cox Newspapers, Forbes.com, iVillage Inc., Marketwatch.com, Meredith Corp., New York Times Digital, the Weather Channel Interactive and Yahoo are some of the IAB members that currently offer or plan to offer the half-page unit.
Advertising.com Files for $100M IPO
Baltimore-based Advertising.com has joined the ranks of Internet marketing firms raising money through initial public offerings. The company last week filed papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission, laying out plans for a $100 million stock offering.
The pay-for-performance-oriented company says it plans to use the dough for “working capital, general corporate purposes and possible future acquisitions.”
Advertising.com brought in $132.3 million in revenues in 2003, turning a profit of $18.7 million.
