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The latest financial report from ETrade shows online trading won't stop. Last quarter, ETrade opened 80,000 new accounts -- going beyond the 400,000 level. But the marketplace is extremely competitive. To stand out, an online financial institution needs a tremendous brand. One way to build this is to provide high-quality content. To this end, ETrade offers extensive financial news stories, charts, company fundamental information, screening tools, Morningstar ratings, access to Briefing.com, etc. Of course, just as there are many online financial institutions, there are many online financial content sites, such as Yahoo Finance, theStreet.com, and StockSite.com. All are competing aggressively to be the dominant source of financial information.

One of the early entrants in online financial content is Quote.com (http://www.quote.com), based in Mountain View, Calif. On the site, you can find almost any type of financial information. In terms of free information, you have access to delayed quotes (12,000 stocks, 100,000 options, 300 indexes, 500 commodity futures, and 7,500 mutual funds), balance sheet and earnings data, portfolio tracking, real-time news headlines (from 500 sources), non-customizable charts, foreign exchange rates, and a mutual fund screener. To generate revenue, Quote.com sells advertising on these pages.

If you want even more information, you have the option of paying a subscription for three different levels of service: Basic ($9.95 per month), Extra ($24 per month), and Premium ($99.95 per month). Using these subscription services, you gain access to real-time quotes, more portfolio and charting customization, trading analysis tools, annual reports via U.S. mail, and end-of-the day portfolio e-mail alerts. However, besides selling subscriptions, Quote.com also helps others develop custom financial centers.

Here's what Quote.com offers:

Custom solutions: Quote.com will help financial institutions develop high-end websites. One example is the site Quote.com built for PIMCO Funds, which consists of 27 mutual funds and has $190 billion in assets (of which there are approximately 500,000 investors). For those brokers who sell a minimum of $50,000 in PIMCO Funds, they will have access to a vast array of financial research. The website is meant to establish loyalty with brokers -- which is extremely important, considering how competitive the mutual fund marketplace is. According to Stephen Jobe, vice president of marketing at PIMCO Funds, Quote.com offers the best customization solutions.

Developers network: Interestingly enough, the fastest-growing market for financial information comes from non-financial companies. After all, a company might want to give its employees help with handling their 401(k), health plan, or investor relations. Examples of such companies that use the Quote.com content include Ford, Johnson & Johnson, the Los Angeles Times, and even Playboy.

However, Quote.com simply does not have the time to cater to all these potential customers. So, the company has established a program that lets third-party Web developers use Quote.com technology to be integrated into websites. Essentially, Quote.com has distilled its technology into easily customizable objects. For example, a developer may be able to offer a company headline news and streaming market data objects into a customer site. It can take less than a week to create such a site.

Of course, not all companies can afford high-end customization. Thus, Quote.com has a solution for smaller companies. It's called Instant Quote.com. With it, a company can easily add news, quotes, and charts into a website or intranet.

You can select from three templates:

1.Shareholder Center: This displays -- on a continuous basis -- the trading data on stocks, as well as current news. 2.Personal Market Viewer: This comes with a ticker, as well as the latest financial news. 3.Industry Watch: This lets the user create a custom portfolio.

Conclusion

So far, Quote.com has 250,000 registered users. The company is privately held, with venture financing from Sequoia Capital, Highland Capital Partners, Shawmut Capital and Barra. There are about 70 employees.

Late last year, the company underwent a major reorganization, as Chris Cooper, the founder of Quote.com, became the CEO again. Basically, the cost structure of the company was not in line with the revenue growth (revenues were growing at 300 percent, whereas costs grew at 400 percent).

Since then, Quote.com has been reducing costs, as well as bringing out new products and services. And, yes, there is a good chance the company will be profitable this year. There is nothing better than having a financial site practicing good financial management.

Commercial: Readers interested in IPOs may want to check out The Investor's Guide To New Issues: How To Profit From Initial Public Offerings, available in our bookstore.