Excite Inc. and Bank One Corporation have announced a deal that they claim could net the internet portal company over $125m. The partnership deal gives Bank One exclusive rights to market banking services through a financial services center linked to Excite’s homepage. A Bank One spokesperson said that the bank saw the deal as a channel through which to attract new customers from the terrific placement and exclusivity that the deal gives it. Excite also sees it as an opportunity to market its services to Bank One customers, in addition to making money from direct payments from Bank One. The deal is, however, performance related, meaning that Excite will only realize full revenues if mutually agreed sales and new customer targets are reached. Excite therefore only expects to reflect $8m in extra revenues in the first year, after which the deal will be considered for renewal. The service will go online in the first half of next year. Excite users who sign up will be offered a range of services such as: opening checking and savings accounts, obtaining credit cards, loans and insurance products, and receiving and paying bills.
