Todito.com Launches World Cup 2002 Site with Exclusive TV Azteca Content - Complete Coverage of All the Action from Korea and Japan for Mexican and U.S. Hispanic Soccer Fans - Special Edition World Cup 2002 Todito Card to be Sold Exclusively in 7 Eleven Convenience Stores
Todito.com, a leading Internet portal, ISP and virtual marketplace for North American Spanish-speakers, announced today the launch of the Todito World Cup 2002 Internet site.
"Thanks to our exclusive content agreement with TV Azteca, Todito's World Cup 2002 site will offer the most complete online coverage - it's a soccer fan's dream come true," commented Adrian Gonzalez, Todito's Chief Operating Officer. "We've put a good deal of time and money into the site because it's good business - we've already sold over US$500,000 in sponsorships and advertising packages associated with our World Cup site."
In addition to the text and streaming audio/visual contributions by TV Azteca's renowned sports commentators, Todito will also provide up-to-the- minute coverage of all games and historical background on each of the 32 participating teams.
Although Todito does not have the Internet broadcast rights to any of the World Cup games, all TV Azteca sports programs, such as the top-rated Los Protagonistas hosted by Jose Ramon Fernandez, will be streamed (in real-time and for play-back on-demand) exclusively on Todito's Digital Television channel. The Todito World Cup 2002 site also offers soccer fans the chance to win over US$100,000 in prizes by correctly guessing the winners of the World Cup games.
"For die-hard Mexican and U.S. Hispanic fans, Todito.com will be one of the few Internet sites offering round-the-clock World Cup coverage," commented Mr. Gonzalez. "Our relationship with TV Azteca allows us to offer this world- class online content with very low cash outflows."
May 14, 2002 - Soccer Fans Around the World Rely on Intershop Technology - Intershop Enfinity Powers Soccer World Cup Online Store
Intershop Communications' Enfinity platform provides the technology for the official Soccer World Cup 2002 online store. Despite demanding localization requirements, the project was implemented in a plug-and-play manner by Intershop partner UBIS in cooperation with Intershop Consulting Services.
Because this year's World Cup is the first ever to be jointly hosted by two countries -- Korea and Japan -- the online store theoretically consists of three separate solutions for Japan, Korea and the "rest of the world," which are easily combined on one Enfinity platform. The Korean and Japanese sites are in their respective languages, while other users can choose to order in English, Spanish, French or German.
"We are very pleased that such a comprehensive solution could be realized in just a few weeks," explains Dr. Ludger Vogt, head of consulting at Intershop. "We expect tremendous traffic levels, which would make this site one of the world's most-visited sites at peak times. Enfinity has already proven its ability to meet such extreme performance requirements in existing e-commerce solutions for Otto, Tchibo and BOL."
The major challenge in this particular project was developing three separate solutions and integrating them onto one single platform for central management and easy maintenance. Logistics are provided by Hermes General Service and Otto, the global market leader in the mail-order business. The Otto Group is presently using Intershop solutions for a number of major e-commerce projects worldwide.
May 2, 2002 - Reuters Builds Up to 2002 World Cup With Comprehensive Online Package
Reuters, the global information, news and technology group, today announced that it is getting match-fit for the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan commencing on May 31 with its most ambitious multimedia package to date.
Reuters is offering its clients a package of online football information products, including detailed venue, team and player profiles, alongside 24-7 breaking news, pictures, interactive graphics and a live results services. It is the most comprehensive multimedia package Reuters has ever offered and will bring the 2002 World Cup to life online -- full details are attached.
Reuters will run its largest off-site editorial operation in Korea and Japan with over 165 editorial staff, including 135 journalists, photographers, TV journalists and graphic artists. Reuters will cover all 32 teams and, as a major component of its World Cup coverage, one photographer will shadow each of the top 17 teams during the tournament both on and off the pitch, with unrestricted access to the teams' training grounds, hotels and free time. Moreover, each of the 64 games being played will be covered by up to six Reuters photographers, providing unmatched coverage during the tournament.
Over recent years soccer has exploded onto the Internet, driving website growth across the world. The 1998 FIFA World Cup in France was viewed by over 3.7 billion people and created more online traffic than any other single media event. The official france98.com website received more than 13 million visitors and generated over 1 billion page impressions. The 2002 FIFA World Cup promises to be even bigger, and Reuters is offering its clients the opportunity to grab a part of this online action.
Monique Villa, Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships, Pictures, Sports and Graphics, said: "This is our largest ever editorial team on location for a World Cup, covering all the news as it happens. The scale of Reuters operations in Korea and Japan will ensure that breaking news and pictures are collected and distributed to clients as quickly as possible -- as fast as four minutes from goal scored to desktop, using state-of-the-art wireless LAN technology for pictures. Our comprehensive and exciting multimedia package enables our clients to bring the full World Cup experience to their users, wherever they may be."
Keith Cooper, Director of Communications, FIFA and a customer of Reuters, commented: "The name of Reuters has long been synonymous with excellence in every field of journalism and FIFA has always enjoyed a strong working relationship with the agency. We can assume that this latest venture will maintain the high standards that have already been set."
Complete Book of the World Cup 2002 - "Everything you ever wanted to know about the World Cup can be found here . . . the author has carried out so much painstaking research." - News of the World. The ultimate reference book on the World Cup, fully updated to cover all tournaments from 1930–98, with match–by–match articles featuring the biggest names in world football, plus results from every game played. All the statistics are here in one volume, enough to satisfy the most avid of World Cup fans, including team line-ups, goalscorers, stadiums, referees, crowd figures and exact dates, plus authoritative records and statistics section, as well as detailed reports of every game played in the Finals. From the brilliant Italian team, winners in 1934, and Geoff Hurst’s hat–trick for England in 1996 to the fabulous Brazilian team of Pele, Tostao and Jairzinho of 1970, and the 1998 French side of Zidane, Deschamps and Desailly - all the fabulous memories and defining moments are captured in this one book.