Excite, like all other online directories, might get its butt kicked by Yahoo on the Web, but the company hopes to be the leading player on TV. Excite said Tuesday that it has renewed its contract with WebTV to be the service's default search engine.
While WebTV's number of subscribers is still relatively low - less than 100,000 nationwide - the company is steadily growing. Its potential was certainly clear to Microsoft, which plunked down a hefty US$425 million to acquire WebTV earlier this year.
Excite is featured as well on Microsoft's Internet Explorer 3.0 and 4.0. The Redmond software giant is rumored to be pondering development of its own online directory service, making an acquisition of Excite now a distinct possibility.
Whatever else, its positioning on WebTV opens up a new world of opportunity as the computer and broadcasting industries strive to bring the Net into people's living rooms via PC/TV hybrids. "With the WebTV Network, we reach a broader consumer audience than that of the Web alone," Excite vice president Brett Bullington said. "This agreement also adds one more piece to the strong relationship between Excite and Microsoft."
Excite has been the main search service on WebTV since October 1996. It is accessed directly from the "search" button on WebTV's main screen.
