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FoxSports.com has split with Lycos, a month after laying off all its writers. |
FoxSports.com and Lycos last week ended an 18-month partnership that representatives of both sides said was no longer beneficial.
The split is a notable reversal for a site that 18 months ago celebrated the estimated $300 million partnership as the beginning of a long-term marriage and the key into the homes of millions of potential visitors. But FoxSports.com senior vice president and general manager Ross Levinsohn said the site no longer needs the exposure nor the sponsorship muscle that the Lycos network initially provided.
A Lycos spokesman declined comment on the resolution, citing a confidentiality agreement, but said Lycos initially approached FoxSports.com about ending the partnership.
"[Lycos] enabled us to get our business off the ground," Levinsohn said, adding that the network's 35 million unique visitors gave the site "tremendous" exposure and helped build the brand. "We've now built up a good sales force that can go out and monetize the site and work hand-in-hand with the TV people."
Heading up that sales effort will be John Trimble, hired two weeks ago. Trimble, who had headed SI.com's integrated sales unit since 2001, said the job was especially appealing because of the opportunity to leverage Fox's television assets.
"My main focus is taking advantage of the [MLB All-Star Game] and the football season," said Trimble, who will work as vice president of sales.
But outside of Fox's television assets, the site appears to be an increasingly difficult sell, if recent traffic numbers are an indication. FoxSports.com in May ranked 12th among sports sites, with 1.94 million unique visitors, according to comScore Media Metrix.
The site last month laid off its entire staff of eight writers. As of July 1, nearly all of the site's content is generated by wire services.
Still, Levinsohn said, the television assets open up plenty of opportunities for compelling content, such as plans for strapping a camera on Oakland A's pitcher Mark Mulder during the 2003 All-Star Game and showing the feed online.
The deal between FoxSports.com and Lycos, reached in January 2002, had an immediate impact. It made FoxSports.com the premier sports destination of the Lycos network and gave Lycos a substantial Web and TV presence. It also followed a pattern of sports sites using Internet network partners as engines to drive traffic.
The partnership helped drive the number of unique visitors for FoxSports.com from an estimated 829,000 in January 2002 to 6.26 million in February 2002, but that number has declined since then.