Snap Out of It: NBCi Launches Broadband Portal, NBCi.com

NBC Internet (NBCI Quote) outlined Monday how it is readying itself for the Internet of the future. And it wasn't a Snap decision.

Preparing for a world in which most U.S. homes will have fast Internet connections, NBCi -- operator of the Xoom.com community site and various NBC-affiliated Web sites -- Monday launched an all-purpose starting point, or portal, targeted at Internet users with high-speed, or broadband, online access. But instead of using the name of its current portal, Snap, the company has decided to call the new site NBCi.com.

The choice to go with NBCi.com is an acknowledgment of how difficult it is to create memorable brands on the Internet, and of the stakes in the broadband online game, which in coming years stands to be potentially far more profitable than narrowband Internet.

Internet Dinners?

The name aside, the launch of NBCi.com signals a coming clash among several companies seeking to develop destinations for a growing audience of Internet users with broadband connections. The battle corresponds with the ongoing competition between dial-up, or narrowband, portals, in which Yahoo! (YHOO Quote) and America Online (AOL Quote) are the reigning champions. Chief competition for NBCi in the broadband arena, says NBCi President Edmond Sanctis, includes AOL, which is developing AOL TV, a television service that includes interactive features of AOL; Yahoo!, which acquired online broadcaster broadcast.com in February; and Excite@Home (ATHM Quote), which combines the Excite portal with the @Home high-speed cable modem service. ...