MERCURY CENTER ON THE WEB! San Jose Mercury News Now Publishing on the World Wide Web For Immediate Release January 18, 1995 Contact: Barry Parr Mercury Center San Jose Mercury News 750 Ridder Park Drive San Jose, CA 95190 408-920-5384 Email: barryparr@sjmercury.com http://www.sjmercury.com SAN JOSE -- The San Jose Mercury News announced today that its daily newspaper is now publishing on the World Wide Web in a ground-breaking format that includes advertising from Ameritech, Career Mosaic, Coldwell Banker, Del Monte, Leo Hamel & Co. jewelers, IBM and Netcom. The Silicon Valley newspaper was one of the first to go online, launching Mercury Center on America Online on May 1993. Mercury Center's Web site has been in beta test since December. ''We're proud to introduce Mercury Center Web for what we view as significant and growing audience on the Internet,'' said Bill Mitchell, director of electronic publishing for the Mercury News. ''At the same time, we are committed to continue aggressive development of our service on America Online, which we believe is the best choice for many consumers.'' Mercury Center Web offers the complete news and editorial text of each day's San Jose Mercury News, arranged by sections in the form of headlines and summaries. Readers can click on the headline to read the complete article. The home page is updated throughout the day with changing news photographs and the latest headlines. Other features include searchable classified ads, access to Mercury Center's NewsHound clipping service, Computer Currents magazine and links to other Web sites in the Bay Area and nationwide. Advertising positions consisting of an image and hyperlink are located at the bottom of most pages. An advertiser's content may be stored on the Mercury Center server, or at another server anywhere on the Internet. ''You don't need Mercury Center to get on the Web, but if you expect to build an audience for your commercial Web site, you're going to have to advertise it in a high-traffic area like Mercury Center,'' explained Barry Parr, Mercury Center product development manager. Del Monte's advertisement is a hypertext cookbook. Leo Hamel & Co. jewelers of Redwood City, Calif., offers a catalog and interactive mystery game. Coldwell Banker's area on Mercury Center offers information on its real estate listings in Northern California. Career Mosaic, a service of the Bernard Hodes Advertising Inc., lists job openings in Silicon Valley and elsewhere. The advertisements by Ameritech , IBM and Netcom feature links to their existing home pages. ''This is a unique opportunity for an advertiser like Coldwell Banker because of the global reach of the Internet and the ability to display images of homes,'' said Larry Knapp, president of Coldwell Banker Northern California. Mercury Center uses the NetsiteTM server software from Mountain View, CA-based Netscape Communications Corporation and recommends use of the Netscape Navigator client software for optimum performance. ''Netscape's client software provides the best view and fullest use of Mercury Center on the Web,'' said Mitchell. ''Mercury Center is a leading example of how publishers can use the Internet of deliver their publications to a global audience,'' said Jim Clark, chairman of Netscape Communications. ''The combination of Netscape Navigator and Netsite server software enables Mercury Center to provide news and information to online users smoothly, reliably and securely.'' The server is connected to the Internet via Netcom Online Communications Services Inc., a San Jose-based Internet services provider. Mercury Center is a top-level menu selection for users of Netcom's NetCruiserTM software. ''The NetCruiser bundle of Internet tools and its web browser provides a great turnkey solution for Internet access,'' said Mitchell. In addition, Mercury Center Web is linked from the home page of Prodigy's new Web service. Search software from Verity Inc. of Mountain View, Calif., plays a key role in the internal operation of Mercury Center Web. It is also used to make Mercury News classified ads searchable. ''You can enter a request like 'marketing manager, engineering' and get a relevance-ranked list of ads,'' said Parr. ''In the first quarter of 1995, we'll extend the power of the Verity search engine to the entire Mercury Center Web.'' Other improvements planned for the first quarter are access to supplementary articles and documents, a searchable library of back issues of the Mercury News, and bulletin boards where readers can communicate with one another. Mercury Center Web is currently free of charge. Later this quarter, the service will be divided into free and paid areas. ''The subscription price has not been determined,'' said Mitchell, ''but advertising will help us keep the service very inexpensive for consumers to subscribe.'' Mercury Center is the information services unit of the San Jose Mercury News, a Knight-Ridder newspaper. Mercury Center also offers the NewsHound clipping service, News Call telephone and fax service, and News Search, a librarian-assisted archive service. _________________ Netscape, Netscape Navigator, and Netsite are trademarks of Netscape Communications Corp. NetCruiser is a trademark of Netcom Online Communication Services Inc. Transmitted: 95-01-26 09:03:06 EST