Regular user of FoxNews.com will have noticed the difference last week following a redesign of the site that wraps stories with related news and highlights video links on every page.

"The stories are the most important thing and are the heart of site but these changes reflect readers' comments. And they wanted more video and easier navigation," said general manager Bert Solivan.

Fox News launched its video section in January and immediately saw increased traffic.

"We have the luxury of a strong on-air brand and people associate Fox News with TV. Online video brings TV closer to the web," said Mr Solivan.

Users can view 2-4 minute clips of the most popular TV shows, leading news stories or exclusive interviews. It takes around 30 minutes to edit and digitise video for the site, which is offered in narrow and broadband streams for both Windows Media Player and Real Player.

Hourly news updates are one of the most popular video services on the site, particularly during office hours. Between 60 and 65 per cent of traffic to the site comes during the working day.

The redesign has also created more space for advertisers, which account for around 70 per cent of the site’s revenue, said Mr Solivan.

FoxNews.com first launched in 1996 but was run by News Digital Media, a separate division of parent company News Corporation After losing money as a standalone service, the site was brought in-house in autumn 2000 and has since tripled its visitor numbers. Statistics by Nielsen//NetRatings recorded FoxNews traffic peaking at 5.7million unique users in April this year.

Towards the end of 2004 FoxNews.com will be improving its business section, adding more customisable tools to help users manage their financial portfolios.

More news on dotJournalism:

Fox scolded for BBC rant

See also:
FoxNews.com: http://www.foxnews.com
News Corporations: http://www.newscorp.com

Free daily newsletter

If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).