NBC puts 40 affiliates online
NBC Interactive Neighborhood launches local content on the Web sites of 40 NBC affiliates, the latest example of the convergence between TV and computers.
The local content market is getting crowded, however, with offerings from Microsoft's Sidewalk, Yahoo's local sites, and CitySearch, not to mention the numerous Web affiliates of local newspapers and television stations.
The offering from NBC Interactive will offer content from heavy hitters such as MSNBC, Infoseek, online yellow pages Big Yellow, Monster Board, and GIST online television guide.
According to Bill Bass, an analyst at Forrester Research, none of the roughly 70 existing local content sites are yet profitable, and he doesn't expect them to be in the near future. But Bass said a cornerstone to success will be allying with either a local newspaper or TV affiliate brand name, which NBC has done.