• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, October 3, 2007

Two weeks before News Corp.'s Fox Business Network launches, the channel is giving a further indication that it hopes to outfox CNBC with a sort of Wall Street-cum-Main Street approach.

On Monday, a beta version--essentially promo material--of FoxBusiness.com went live, with a prominent image of those two street signs intersecting as if one were "Haight" and the other "Ashbury."

The "Wall Street" side comes with a "Business is Your Life" tag; the "Main Street" sign offering a reverse: "Life is Your Business." The "intersection" then spreads apart to an "It's the Same Street" line.

A click then opens to a video with individuals speaking about personal-finance issues they're facing, such as health care, mortgage payments and retirement. But the individuals appear to be more Wall Street than Main, with jobs such as equity-research analyst and vice president of a New York financial firm.

If FBN opts to appeal to individual investor-types "between the coasts," it risks losing out on some ad dollars targeted at more affluent Wall Street types. Still, personal trading options such as E-Trade and Bank of America, now offering 30 commission-free online trades a month, would seem eager to reach the average investor.

Another issue: Will Fox, with its traditional flair for the dramatic, lose some interest if it delves too deep into news-you-can-use personal finance matters? So far, it hasn't given any indication that it plans a heightened emphasis in that area.

Last month, News Corp. head Rupert Murdoch demurred at an industry event on offering much insight into FBN as it preps for its Oct. 15 debut. He promised it would deliver a markedly different presentation and focus than CNBC. And he reiterated the boiler plate that "CNBC is a financial channel for Wall Street ... we're for Main Street." He has suggested that CNBC takes a more dour approach to business coverage, while FBN will celebrate the accomplishments of prospering entrepreneurs.

Short of a logo--that's a bit sleeker and more modern than sister network Fox News--the FBN site deftly provides few tipoffs to CNBC or others about the network's dynamic.

Much of the site's focus is on the anchors the News Corp. network has hired, along with their bios and some blog entries. The site is promoted on FoxNews.com's business section, with a massive link to its sister network's site.