White Directory Publishers and BIAP Inc. Conclude a Landmark Agreement for Exclusive Advertising Sales Rights for Yellow Pages on TV
White Directory Publishers and BIAP Inc. Conclude a Landmark Agreement for Exclusive Advertising Sales Rights for Yellow Pages on TV
Agreement Covers 28 White Directory Markets in the US.
Yellow Pages on TV is the First Ever of its Kind.
BUFFALO, N.Y. and PLANO, Texas, Sept. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- White Directory Publishers, a division of Hearst Holdings, Inc., and BIAP Inc. jointly announced today an agreement for Hearst-owned Talking Phone Book(R) to be the exclusive sales agents for BIAP's Yellow Pages on TV, a software application that allows viewers to access Yellow Pages information on TV with their regular digital remote.
The Talking Phone Book, the third largest independent provider of Yellow Pages books in the United States, is going to be the first to offer advertisers the opportunity to have their listings and links to interactive micro sites on television. In the 28 markets covered in the agreement merchants will have the chance to place interactive display ads. These will then appear on screen at the top of the listings when a viewer searches Yellow Pages on TV with their remote. The results can be viewed from any channel. The interactive display ads, when clicked, will take the viewer to a micro site with the most current business and promotional information. This micro site can be updated on demand at the request of advertiser. Consumers' 'favorites' can be bookmarked for easy access.
"What we love about this product is that it can do so much and is available on the one device that people still use more than any other, their television," said Greg Garrick , the vice president of marketing of White Directory. "The merchant information can be changed daily so tonight's restaurant specials can run in a crawl on their micro site. If your phone number changes or you are a new business in town, Yellow Pages on TV can accommodate you immediately. The product offering will soon include 'click to call' and video on demand for those merchants who want to offer longer form video."
Yellow Pages on TV was created by BIAP Inc. for television set top boxes. It enables viewers to retrieve and display data just using the standard digital remote. The consumer does not have to acquire any equipment to make Yellow Pages on TV work; they can easily get to it from a simple access menu with the push of a button on their remote.
"We are thrilled that The Talking Phone Book is going to be the first Yellow Pages provider to offer a televised version of the product," said Patrick Peters BIAP EVP. "This new application is a win for everyone. Consumers get the ease of convenience that it provides. Advertisers get its timeliness, its depth of information and the ability to dominate a category. The Talking Phone Book becomes the clear best advertising choice for a merchant when combined with the traditional book and on-line capability."
Yellow Pages on TV will begin rolling out to consumers throughout North America in the coming months. Starting in 2008 it will also offer a VOD feature that will allow consumers to watch contextually relevant longer form videos about a merchant when they click onto the merchants interactive display ad. "Click to call" will automatically connect merchants and viewers by phone and will be added with the VOD feature.
BIAP's patented agent content retrieval and transcoding technology allows viewers to display information on their television, including such services as eBay on TV, 2006 NBC Winter Olympics, sports trackers, and now Yellow Pages on TV. BIAP's applications run on all digital set-top-box models deployed today, including those produced by Cisco (Scientific Atlanta) and Motorola.
BIAP Inc. and Time Warner Cable have received three Emmy nominations; two last year for the 2005 Fantasy Football Tracker and 2006 NBC Olympics NOW applications, and one this year for the 2006 Fantasy Football Tracker.
About White Directory Publishers;
Shaping an industry since 1968, White Directory Publishers has been publishing the nationally-known, award-winning Talking Phone Book(R) for 39 years and is one of the largest independent yellow page publishers in the country. White Directory publishes more than 90 directories in 12 states including 13 books under the Area-Wide brand in Texas. For more information, visit: http://www.talkingphonebook.com/.
Hearst Corporation is one of the nation's largest diversified media companies. Its major interests include 12 daily and 30 weekly newspapers, including the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle, San Antonio Express- News, and Albany Times Union; nearly 200 magazines around the world, including Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, and O, The Oprah Magazine; 29 television stations through Hearst-Argyle Television (NYSE:HTV) , which reach a combined 18% of U.S. viewers; joint venture interests in leading cable networks, including Lifetime, A&E, The History Channel and ESPN; as well as business
About BIAP Inc.;
BIAP (Broadband Interactive Applications) is a leading iTV media company with patented technology. Through its software BIAP adds value to, and generates revenue for operators' broadband and digital services by engaging viewers, enhancing programming and enabling advertisers. Currently BIAP has a growing portfolio of active iTV customers including such leading media companies as Time Warner, NBC/Universal and eBay.
This year, BIAP, working with Time Warner Cable, deployed Fantasy Football and Baseball trackers. In addition to Fantasy Sports and eBay on TV, BIAP's programming package includes TV Alerts, Personalized and Localized iTV and Local Search as well as advanced advertising applications. BIAP deployed the 2006 Olympics in an interactive format on six different NBC channels. BIAP is now carried in a growing number of markets across the United States and deploys numerous interactive television applications and targeted, interactive advertising features. Corporate headquarters are in Plano, Texas, with research and development in Sterling, Virginia.
First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:
Source: BIAP Inc.
CONTACT: Shawn Christensen of White Directory Publishers,
+1-716-875-9100 ext. 82480, schristensen@talkingphonebook.com; or Ellen Cooper
of BIAP, +1-212-777-8353, ellencooper@biap.com
Web site: http://www.biap.com/
http://www.talkingphonebook.com/
Profile: International Entertainment
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