• by March 31, 2002

After marathon negotiations, Dow Jones & Co. and Tribune Media Services on Friday inked a deal that gives TMS rights to license Dow Jones content to corporate Intranet and Extranet customers.

The deal has major implications for both companies. "This obviously wasn't a make or break deal for TMS, but it was a big shot in the arm when they needed one," a high-ranking executive of parent Tribune Co. told MediaPost.

TMS currently sells content from a host of traditional news sources: from Tribune Co. newspapers, to the Associated Press, to the Washington Post and USA Today to an array of editorial columnists and cartoonists, among many other syndicated products.

But by moving into digital delivery to corporations, "this opens up a whole new and exciting marketing opportunity for us", a Tribune executive said.

For digital delivery of this information, TMS has worked in tandem with Screaming Media to develop new technology for the service. The service will initially have a sales force of five people.

For Dow Jones, the deal provides a partnership with a big player in the world of content syndication. Like many large, traditional publishers, Dow Jones has been slow to create licensing agreements with outside partners.

Currently, Dow Jones' main outside partner is Reuters Group Plc through Factiva, a Web-based news and business information service that sells to companies around the world. The venture combines Dow Jones Interactive and Reuters Business Briefing.

Insiders at the Tribune say that this new service with Dow Jones is the only new venture funded this year.