The company's flagship product, e. The distribution process works akin to a bionic paperboy with a worldwide route and a pouch the size of Texas. ClariNet receives constant newsfeeds from providers such as Reuters, The Associated Press and Commerce Business Daily. Most of the sorting is done by computers, but ClariNet's editorial staff of five performs finer sorts and edits stories, some of which arrive as radio transcripts or in other nontext formats. The company ships 9MB of news daily via the Net to its licensed distributors, who post it on a local server for subscribers.
Subscribers can then access the stories using a Web browser or news-reader software.
Templeton says the flat-rate structure is one of e. News's greatest advantages over other Net news services. One thing, one package, one company's output is tough to sell. In a business climate that increasingly favors mass customization, ClariNet stands alone in its dedication to providing pure mass. That fits very well with the way people want to buy things.