Zapme is dead. I actually helped to put them out of business.
They were providing free computers to schools, with a hitch. The computer
screen has a 2X4 banner ad on all of the time (even when students were using
the word processing.) Students could click on the ad at any time and receive
a "full multimedia advertising experience" (roughly quoting from some of
their investor literature).
They told school administrators that they were strong protectors of student
privacy -- because they required the use of student "usernames," not real
names. What they were not telling administrators was that they did not need
real names to develop individual market profiles on specific students that
they were using the target advertising to specific students based on their
knowledge of the students' individual interests.
I found one press release from an investor firm that was marketing their
stock describing a new feature indicating that the feature would help Zapme
"capture the eyeballs and e-wallets of a captive and attractive
demographic."
They were being backed into a corner by folks concerned about advertising in
schools and privacy and contracted with a very wonderful gentleman at
PriceWaterhouseCoopers. I contacted him about expressed my concerns from a
student privacy perspective. He was very interested. I sent him a report I
wrote on the issue. The overview of the report was published by the NSBA in
their Updating School Board Policy publication. I also filed a complaint
about them with the FTC. The FTC does not tell you if they initiate a
review, but I am pretty sure they did.
My efforts were pretty effective. Actually, an executive from Zapme ran into
a woman I worked with at the U of Oregon at a conference and told her that
my activities instrumental in forcing them to change their business model.
:-) But just a very short time later, when they were trying to change, they
were bought out by a group of the shareholders and then went belly-up.
This company was one of quite a few in the late 90's era of the "age of
irrational exuberance" who were trying to offer free Internet technologies
to schools in exchange for access to student "eyeballs." These business
models were short-lived. The report I wrote on this is on my web site:
http://responsiblenetizen.org/documents/eyeballs.html
Channel One is still, unfortunately, a viable business.
Nancy
Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D.
Responsible Netizen Institute
http://responsiblenetizen.org
> Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 23:51:00 -0400
> From: Kathy Chappel <kchappel@WESTPA.NET>
> Subject: GEN: Channel One and ZapMe!
>
> Dear Colleagues,
> Except for reading about these two programs, I have never heard of them =
> before. I am interested in hearing from anyone who has had (or is =
> currently having) experience with one or both of these programs. I am =
> interested in hearing both pros and cons.
> Thank you,
> Kathy
>
> Kathy Chappel, Librarian
> Columbus, Conelway, and Spartansburg Elementary Schools
> Corry, PA
> kchappel@westpa.net
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