Beyond crunching out large volumes of email deliveries, Exactis also provides the support to allow people to personalise the content they wish to read. One of the company's legacies is its own early custom email service, Infobeat. Sold to Sony last year, the Web site continues to be a model for custom Internet information sites. With 2.5 million subscribers, it provides email newsletters, reminders and brief summaries on topics including entertainment, finance, news, sports and weather. The site is also good example of the growing trend towards Permission style marketing on the Internet.
Visitors can register quickly by entering a minimal amount of information.
More demographic information is then requested. Infobeat explains that knowing more about their subscribers enables them to target better advertising and sponsors. And as we all know, advertising support is necessary to keep the service free. In return for sharing more information, subscribers are then offered a wide, impressive range of options to customise the content of their emails. Enjoying key positions in this ever-changing industry has today established Craney as a leading authority on the Internet and Internet issues.