IAR Bits and Bytes

AOL, EA, J Records Team on Promo

America Online, Electronic Arts and J Records/Violator are teaming up on a promotion centered on the release of EA Sports’ “NBA Live 2003” title. The effort also will promote America Online’s new Inside the Game area.

Starting Friday, Inside the Games will feature “Make it Clap,” the new single by J Records’ artist Busta Rhymes, and a selection from “NBA Live.” The single will be made available on America Online for five days, leading up to the release of “NBA Live.”

As part of the promotion for “NBA Live,” AOL Games and EA Sports will provide a tutorial hosted by Marv Albert; a never-before-seen photo gallery featuring Busta; a must-have cheat code to unlock the Busta character in NBA Live 2003 game; and exclusive video from NBA Live 2003 only for AOL Broadband members.

The promotion will be the inaugural event on Inside the Game, which is available through AOL’s Games Channel, and at Keyword: Inside the Game, and which is intended to promote new game releases with exclusive content, cheat codes, video clips, and so on.

During the next several weeks, Inside the Game will feature exclusive video from the “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and “The Sims Online”.

IAB: Call It “Interactive Broadcasting” to Help Sales

The Interactive Advertising Bureau this week said it encourages members to adopt the term “interactive broadcasting” in lieu of “streaming media.” It said the move is designed to better help agency buyers understand the medium — and to buy its inventory.

The New York-based IAB said that in a survey of more than 500 executives, almost three-quarters of whom work for media buying or planning agencies, about 79 percent agreed with the change in nomenclature, “to distinguish between offline and online advertising and clearly define the evolving medium.”

“Our intent is to take the category out of the back room and make it a mainstream option for advertisers as well as publishers,” said IAB President and CEO Greg Stuart, who added that the term is “more inclusive, and accurate … [and] recognizes the growing importance of the category as a very viable option for advertisers and agencies.”

Fireclick Updates Netflame

Web site analysis player Fireclick unveiled a new version of its flagship Netflame Plus product, with enhancements

The new version of the Los Altos, Calif.-based firm’s ASP include real-time reporting; a new, browser-based interface and customized overviews; and geo-tracking.

It also features more advanced e-commerce analysis that tracks conversion rates, revenue, orders, order size and frequency, in addition to top products, and information on shopping cart abandonment.

Additionally, the service provides segmenting and reporting by segment for products, ad campaigns and affiliate programs.

Clients include RadioShack , Patagonia, Hollywood.com , and MovieTickets.com.

Marketleap to Sell Entries to Inktomi Inclusion Program

San Francisco-based search engine marketer Marketleap said it has been accepted as a reseller into Inktomi’s Search Submit Paid Inclusion program.

The program enables businesses to be indexed in Inktomi’s database, which is updated every 48 hours, and which is syndicated to partners including MSN, About.com, LookSmart and Overture .

Such programs are consider adjuncts to keyword- and page-optimization search engine marketing efforts.

Marketleap also said it would provides buyers of Search Submit with in-depth click-through reporting and tracking.