Hollywood.com Redesign To Launch As Early As Tonight
This story was written by Matt Kapko.
Hollywood.com, the entertainment news and ticketing company, is rolling out a soft launch of its redesigned Web site as early as tonight with an official launch coming Sept. 30, paidContent has learned. A year in the works, it comes almost a month after Hollywood Media (NSDQ: HOLL) sold its flagship domain to a firm controlled by its chairman/CEO and president. Hollywood.com's President and COO Kevin Davis says it's full-steam ahead: "The change in ownership did not change our position or what we're working on."
The redesign allows the site, which dates back to around 1995, to move further into the Web 2.0 with a focus on constantly updated content throughout the day on celebrities, movies and TV. Other changes include the company's logo and a cleaner design. The site will have seven main categories: celebrities, movies, trailers, TV, photos, DVD, fans, but although most of its revenue is from advertising now it will still heavily promote its movie tickets and showtimes service. Davis: "We're opinion-maker makers...We have taken an approach that's quite different from some of the main competitors." Another major component of the new site is built around Hollywood.com's fan community, which includes sites owned by the company and forums. The site is also allowing users more control over what content gets displayed prominently. "All of our top lists are not editorially picked. They're picked by traffic." The company is developing a Facebook widget which may launch before the end of the year.
By Matt Kapko