- Tickle.com
Infobox Dotcom company
company_name = Tickle Inc.
company_slogan =
owner = Monster.com
company_
company_type = Public
foundation =1999
location_city =San Francisco, California
location_country = U.S. flagicon|U.S.
key_people =
homepage = [http://www.tickle.com/ Tickle.com]
revenue =
caption =
url = [http://www.tickle.com tickle.com]
registration =
launch_date =
current_status = active
language = multilingual
alexa =
website_type =Tickle Inc. is a media company, providing self-discovery, and
social networking services. Formerly known as Emode.com, Tickle was founded on the idea that personal insight and connections to others can be scientific, fun and profitable.Tickle survived the dotcom bust of 2000, became profitable in early 2002, was acquired by Monster Worldwide in May 2004 and is now part of the overall Monster network. In April 2008, it was announced that Tickle.com will be shut down at the end of June 2008 [cite web
url=http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/23/no-ones-laughing-at-tickle/
title=No One's Laughing at Tickle
last=Hendrickson
first=Mark
date=April 23, 2008
publisher=TechCrunch] . However the site still remains active to this day despite that.History
Tickle was founded in 1999 as Emode.com by James Currier (who has since left the company), focusing on quizzes and tests for both entertainment and self-discovery. It was an early example of
viral marketing , with tests such as the "What Breed of Dog Are You?" receiving heavy traffic from word-of-mouth and pass-along emails. It had a reputation for using an aggressive and arguably deceptive pop-up campaign. Accordingly, critics charged that Tickle's reputation and practices tarnish the commercial goodwill associated with its clients/advertisers, who appear ordinarily protective of their brands.Products and services
Today, the company employs more than 50 people and is headquartered in
San Francisco, California . The company is trying to rebrand itself as a service that provides tests created by PhDs collaborating with "experts" in their respective fields. Such PhDs and "experts" include Jennifer Bruning Brown and psychologists from Harvard, Yale, Duke, Northeastern, Washington University in St. Louis, University at Albany, SUNY and The University of Kansas.Tickle's tests are divided into nine main channels. The channels are Entertainment, Style, Careers, Relationship, Mind & Body, Teens, Lifestyle, Family and PhD-Certified. Tickle offers over 200 tests, 50 of which are PhD-certified.
Users may message each other and discuss similar scores they may have gotten. They may also upload pictures and write about their hobbies, likes and dislikes, etc. on their profile.
References
* [http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/08/technology/08tickle.html?ex=1394168400&en=68fc2aa9d8abe027&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND "New York Times"] 03/08/2004
* [http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2004/05/25/monsters-tickle-fetish.aspx Motley Fool] 05/25/2004External links
* [http://www.web.tickle.com Official website]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
