Site for new parents debuts
BabyCenter, a Web site for new and expectant parents, is part of what some analysts say is a trend toward focusing on information instead of technology.
Consumers who use the Internet as an information resource also seek out services that organize and prioritize the overwhelming amount of data available on the Internet.
BabyCenter faces competition from established sites such as ParentSoup. But analyst Chris Shipley with market research newsletter DemoLetter says that no other site in the market is filling the niche that BabyCenter is going after.
Shipley believes that BabyCenter is indicative of the future of Internet-based businesses because it is more focused on the services it can provide to new parents, rather than the technology that it uses. She pointed out that sites like BabyCenter that offer people services they can't find as immediately offline will draw people to the Internet.
"It represents a fundamental shift," Shipley said. "I like the way they think: here's a life need, how do we serve it through technology? This is the sort of thing that gives the Internet meaning and value to people."
BabyCenter already has lined up sponsorships from heavy-hitters such as Johnson & Johnson, Charles Schwab, and Clorox, looking to leverage their brand names among Internet users.
Bill Bass, a market analyst with Forrester Research, says that advertisers are attracted to the site because of the targeted audience. It's an audience that is "very tightly defined, that advertisers love to reach. It's not a mass market, but because of that advertisers love them," Bass said.