Netcentives Deal Pushes CMGI Toward Consumers' Consciousness

Companies such as ABC, IBM (IBM Quote) and GE (GE Quote) have embedded their names in America's consciousness. But is there room for CMGI (CMGI Quote)?

Yes, says the Andover, Mass.-based company that has investments in roughly 70 different Internet companies and has seen its stock price zoom sevenfold since December 1998. The company announced a deal Monday that's the first step in building CMGI as a consumer brand, not just a name that's well known among Internet businesses and investors, says CMGI Executive Vice President Bill White.

Investors weren't immediately impressed, slashing CMGI shares by a tenth amid another Nasdaq mini-meltdown. And one branding expert says reaching the consumer is no small task for a company that isn't directly involved in making consumer products.

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