Welcome to Computers - Information on Gateway computers

Providing more focused information, Gateway opens the door to a Web destination site.

HISTORY

When computer company Gateway decided to go online last year, it did so in a move that proved to be a harbinger of events this year in the Internet industry. The North Sioux City S.D., company originally wanted to be an Internet service provider to interested Gateway customers. The idea eventually evolved into developing a destination site or Internet portal, Gateway.net. Such sites, which lead consumers onto the Web, are the latest online trend, with media giants Disney, NBC and Microsoft all preparing to launch their entries into the portal competition.

Jim Von Holle, director of software and Internet services for Gateway, says the rationale behind offering a portal was threefold: to match Internet service with Gateway computers' hardware capabilities and cut down on service calls from users having difficulties linking with their ISPs; to offer Internet service that is delivered in a speed compatible with the fast 56K modems provided with Gateway computers; and to establish a relationship with Gateway customers as more decide to access the Internet.

But in so doing, Gateway wanted to avoid only providing customers with a pipeline onto the Web. As Von Holle explains, most Web service providers are "pure Internet access plays." Therefore, rather than being a plain-vanilla ISP such as Erols or AT&T, he says, Gateway wanted to provide more focused information. However, the company also had no inclination to provide the broad offerings of services such as America Online.

"We weren't going to get into the content-creation business, but we needed to do more than a search engine," he says. "There's so much out there on the Net, you don't need to [create] a lot yourself."

The resulting portal site was developed by interactive agency Oven Digital, New York, and it includes graphical links to more than 140 news, entertainment, sports and information sites. "It was ahead of its time," says Ron Goldberg, director of business development at Oven Digital. The site launched in November with the company's new modem product, and it has been offered with all new Gateway computers since March.

"I think it's something everybody has seen for a while and it hasn't been hard to do," Von Holle says of portals. "It's a matter of seeing who your customers are and providing them relevant content."

STRATEGY

The core demographic for Gateway.net is people in their mid-30s who have young children and enjoy sports-"pretty typical households," Von Holle says.

Much of the content is geared toward them, with sections on news and weather, health and fitness, entertainment, family, games, money, sports and so on. Content providers include Quicken.com, ESPN Sports-Zone, ivillage, Warner Bros. and The New York Times. The content is updated weekly.

The sites link through graphic logos rather than Web addresses. "We wanted a graphical environment that was easy to navigate," Von Holle says. "Especially new customers coming into the Internet, they preferred a point-and-click type of experience."

Michael Knowlton, technology manager at Oven Digital, agrees it was crucial to make the Internet easy to access for novices. Once a user signs on, a wizard appears to connect them to the Internet with one click.

Another tactical issue involved Microsoft's attempt to control the first screen of consumers' PCs by having the Internet Explorer and MSN icons on the page, a point that is part of the Department of Justice's ongoing investigation of Microsoft. Who has control of the screen is significant because users tend not to delve into their systems to select their own Internet homepage or go to the trouble of installing their own Web browser. Thus, they automatically use Microsoft's browser and use Microsoft's Web site as their portal instead of choosing another option.

"Our best interest was to figure a way for the Gateway [homepage] to come up first," Goldberg says.

When Gateway.net first launched, it offered an icon for users to sign up for Internet access, but a Microsoft screen still followed-something Goldberg describes as a Gateway welcome mat" rather than a Microsoft "front door." A decision in the Department of Justice suit last month allowed hardware makers to control the first screen, so Gateway.net now has become the first PC maker to offer its own portal. Microsoft icons still appear on the desktop. Gateway officials declined comment on Microsoft's legal issues.

The site will be integrated with Gateway's traditional ads, promoting it as inexpensive Internet access for Gateway customers. And Von Holle says the service is being promoted in conjunction with Gateway's systems, both through phone orders and information in the product boxes. Although the standard rate is $17.95 per month, customers who commit to the service for six months nay $14.95 per month.

COST/RESULTS

Von Holle says about 12 percent of customers who buy Gateway PCs are subscribing to Gateway.net. He expects the June figures, which were not available at press time, to show a rise to between 20 and 25 percent because the service is now being promoted through phone sales. The company also plans to contact customers who bought PCs before the service existed to offer them Gateway net, starting with those who already own 56K modems.

Of those Gateway customers who seek Internet access, most choose Gateway.net, Von Holle says, adding, "Of course, there's going to be a lot of people who still want AOL."

Von Holle attributes Gateway.net's appeal to its convenience. "We were able to serve up an easy-to-access, easy-to-sign-up process," he says. Because Gateway operates the service and creates the hardware, the information is delivered at a quick speed compatible with the company's newest modems.

Gateway's new Your Ware effort also has aided in sales of the service. The program allows the customized computers to be purchased on a monthly payment plan, and they can be traded in for upgraded models, so the affordability and obsolescence factors in buying a computer are lessened. Customers are offered Gateway.net as part of the monthly payment, so they can essentially pay for their computer and Internet access for less than $50 a month.

TECHNOLOGY

A majority of the site is a straight HTML design, Knowlton says. The wizard was programmed using Visual Basic 5 and a Microsoft product that allows customization of the Internet Explorer installer. "The main technical challenge we faced was making it as transparent to the user as possible," Knowlton explains.

The wizard takes users to the Web site and allows them to register for the service-the one-click access is geared toward new Internet users. All this simplicity requires lots of behind-the-scenes work, though. "It's amazing how difficult that can be," Knowlton says. Different elements of communication had to be coordinated through hack- end programming.

Once users log on to the site, a Web America Network server, using an "elaborate response program," keeps track of account data. A Microsoft IS server and active server pages coordinate the sign-up process.

Most importantly, the service works with Gateway's 56Kx2 modem, the first product to be shipped with a deal for Gateway.net. "We offered our users an Internet service capable of those speeds as well," Von Holle says.