Online direct marketing company Intellipost is acquiring MotivationNet LLC, MyPoints LLC and DirectValue.com from IS giant Experian. Experian, which maintains direct marketing databases, is a subsidiary of UK company Great Universal Stores Plc. Intellipost plans to combine the MyPoints web-based rewards program with its own BonusMail service, which rewards customers for responding to ads in HTML-based email. Intellipost claims this acquisition makes it the leader in online loyalty rewards and direct email marketing, a combined category so compelling the company felt it needed a new name: empowerment marketing. Executives point to Forrester Research predictions that revenues from net-based direct marketing alone will top $1bn in four years. For empowerment marketing, they imply, the sky’s the limit. รก
