SegaSoft Inc, operating in the cut-throat electronic games market, hopes to capture a new generation of online customers with its Heat Network of online games. SegaSoft went to San Francisco, California-based Ikonic Inc to help out with overall project management and application development. Both say they expect to see revenues from subscriptions, merchandising and targeted advertising. The HEAT Network is designed to be a community of Internet games where players sign on, submit player profiles and compete with other online players. The home base contains personalized player information dynamically generated by a database. Players communicate with one another by electronic mail, real-time chat, threaded bulletin boards, and a paging Java applet. HEAT uses Ikonic’s Consumer Intimacy system architecture and advertising on the site targets players based on specific demographics and profiles.
