Free Internet service provider NetZero Inc. this week signed a bundling agreement with Compaq Computer Corp. to include NetZero’s
Internet access service with Compaq’s new Presario models.
NetZero also said that in May it completed a $33 million private preferred
stock financing, including an investment from Compaq. Financial details of this week’s deal were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to have Compaq as a business partner and an investor,” said
Mark Goldston, chairman and CEO of NetZero. “We believe that offering
NetZero’s free Internet access with the Presario computer line will enhance
the value for Compaq’s consumers.”
NetZero provides free Internet access via a local dial-up account and an
e-mail account for each individual user in a household. To subscribe to
NetZero, users must complete a profile that captures interests and
demographic data.
On the desktop, NetZero opens the ZeroPort window — a movable, 1-inch-by
3-inch portion of an 800 x 600 display that continuously delivers
high-quality, 20-second ads targeted to users based on their demographic and
geographic data.
