Not a bad idea right? Well, that depends on who you ask, because Microsoft’s ad agency JWT and its parent WPP are being sued over the ad. According to AdAge, a Delaware firm called Denizen claims to have patented this, and alleges that the agency has infriged upon it.

The patent Denizen refers to is here, filed November 20, 2001, and issued February 22, 2005. The abstract describes it as:

A method and system for incorporating thematic content from a particular television program into product or service advertisements uses program-advancing elements of a television program in an advertisement for a sponsor of the program in order to entice viewers to watch the advertisements. Increased viewership of advertisements can result in increased revenue generated from advertisements that may be realized by television programs, television producers, networks, and advertisers.

Well, that sounds about like the Bing ad, but who knew such a thing had been patented? The suit would indicate that WPP knew about it, and stole the idea, because according to AdAge, Denizen says it was in contact with top executives at WPP for possible business ventures, but the talks fell through. Denizen claims that WPP breached a confidentiality agreement and that JWT has stolen their advertising strategy. (via TechDirt)

With $4.6 million behind it, a three-year program sponsored by the two powerhouses will look at "how ads in traditional and digital media work together to influence consumer choices," according to Emily Steel.  Huge corporations like Ford and Unilever will supply some of the data that’ll be studied.

Steel continued, "Several of the studies will try to determine the best ways to allocate ad spending between traditional and digital media, as well as how online ads affect a company’s sales and brand image.  Another will use psychology and neuroscience to analyze how the brain determines whether Web ads are relevant.  Still another will examine how Chinese Internet users respond to different online-ad formats, such as display and search ads."

Google and WPP seem to be hoping that the research will prove online advertising’s value and convince businesses to spend a little more on it.  Another goal is likely to involve making the advertising more effective, since this is a lot of effort to put into the creation of just a few static charts and graphs.

Google and WPP should soon start accepting proposals for a round of research funding if you feel like investigating any of these issues for them.

Microsoft paid $6 billion for aQuantive after Yahoo picked up Right Media for $680 million and Google got DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.  Many onlookers classified the move as being motivated by panic, and Microsoft hasn’t done anything too interesting with Avenue A since then.

 

So, as reported by Abbey Klaassen, "Here’s how a deal could unfold, according to people familiar with the discussions: Microsoft unloads the agency in exchange for a WPP package that includes 24/7′s Open AdStream publisher ad-serving tool plus cash."

24/7 Real Media is more in line with Microsoft’s Google- and Yahoo-fighting goals; the 24/7 homepage even has a blurb on it about an old Yahoo-WPP strategic partnership.

A swap between Microsoft and WPP isn’t certain, since it’s unlikely that Microsoft could recoup everything it spent in the first place.  But if Steve Ballmer wants to get more aggressive about catching up to his competitors, look for talks to continue and some more serious number-crunching to take place.

"WPP agencies . . . will develop a proprietary media trading platform that connects to Yahoo!’s Right Media Exchange," according to a formal statement.  "WPP agencies will work with 24/7 Real Media to integrate their proprietary targeting capabilities into the platform and develop custom trading strategies, which can be seamlessly executed via the Right Media Exchange on a highly targeted and cost-effective basis.

It’s odd to see the word "proprietary" pop up so much in a press release.  It’s also disappointing that, in a situation like this, not a single dollar figure or percentage sign appeared.

Still, the deal looks like a win-win for both corporations.  Yahoo should see an influx of new advertisers; WPP will gain a big presence in the online marketplace.  Investors are at least relatively pleased, as WPP’s stock is up, and Yahoo is still ahead of the Nasdaq’s loss.

Icahn (and/or Microsoft and Google, as long as we’re looking to outside entities) has yet to respond.

The (former) services of GlobeShooter, which was "a network of more than 1,200 independent filmmakers, professional videographers, photographers, producers and production companies throughout the U.S," comprise the new Spot Runner entity; GlobeShooter was the acquisition target.

This should put Spot Runner in a good position to get more local footage for its ads, and that is the company’s exact goal.  "The acquisition of this network is a natural extension of our strategy to be a central resource for local businesses’ broad spectrum of advertising needs," noted Spot Runner CEO Nick Grouf in a statement.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, so it remains unknown just how much of a hit Spot Runner took in order to accomplish the acquisition.  And as we mentioned before, it does seem like an odd move for a company that might get bought out at any time. 

In any event, we’ll continue to keep an eye on both Spot Runner and WPP, and with a hat tip to Greg Sterling, we’ll be on our way.

Last year, when Internet giants like Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft shelled out cash for digital advertising companies, WPP got in on the fun too. Sorrell opened his wallet to the tune of about $649 million to secure 24/7 Real Media.

In September of last year, Sorrell’s interest in Spot Runner, where WPP already owns a 3 percent stake, surfaced in rumors at the New York Post. Those rumors returned, same same subject, in a new Post report.

Spot Runner looks like a favorite due to WPP already having a piece of the company. If acquired, Spot Runner opens cable advertising to small businesses in a way Google TV has been doing in its testing.

As AdRants noted, ex-Ogilvy executive Andy Berndt, now with Google, told marketers “Google is not starting an ad agency.” Google made similar noises about mobile phones before Android emerged too.

The Post also suggested JumpTap and VideoEgg as possible morsels for WPP to consume. But instead of considering WPP as a competitor, were Google to form an advertising agency, what if they partnered with Google?

We don’t think that’s likely, as both Google and WPP prefer to play with house money. A partnership makes for intriguing ideas, with WPP’s ad agency experience coupled with Google’s dominance in search and online advertising.

Sorrell’s clients may end up on Google and DoubleClick anyway, should that deal receive EU approval, so why not make it easier for multi-million dollar big brand accounts to reach people through all of the outlets WPP and Google could reach?

After all, Berndt’s old Ogilvy firm is part of WPP.

]]> http://www.webpronews.com/a-modest-proposal-wpp-and-google-2008-01/feed 0 http://www.webpronews.com/yahoo-unenthused-about-google-doubleclick-deal-2007-09 http://www.webpronews.com/yahoo-unenthused-about-google-doubleclick-deal-2007-09#comments Mon, 24 Sep 2007 23:38:56 +0000 WebProNews Staff http://www.webpronews.com/?p=40627 Color us with the 'unsurprised' crayon, neither Yahoo nor global advertising power WPP want to see Google walk away with the queen of the ad network homecoming ball.

When ad networks were swapping "For Sale" for "Sold" signs earlier in 2007, Google, Microsoft, and to a lesser extent, Yahoo, all figured in those transactions. There was another big deal that took place for an online ad network, only the buyer wasn’t one known for being a big Internet player.

Sorrell is very much known in advertising circles, as the helm of WPP. He’s been critical of Google’s proposed acquisition of DoubleClick, while purchasing 24/7 Real Media for his firm. WPP may be poised to do more.

The New York Post said Sorrell wants more of Spot Runner than the three percent he owns now. Spot Runner has similar goals to the secretive Google TV project: becoming a go-to destination for small businesses who want to advertise on TV.

"It is a business-to-business model that is perfect for a traditional ad agency," the Post said in citing a source familiar with WPP investments.

Google against WPP, the Google executive techie trinity of Schmidt, Page, and Brin versus the steeped in Machiavellian tradition Sorrell, this should be fun to watch. Maybe Vegas will put a line on this matchup.

That’s not too complicated, but that’s just the beginning.  In an article for the Telegraph, Mark Kleinman writes, “Co-investors in the China Broadband fund include Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, which owns MySpace and holds a stake in the social networking site’s embryonic Chinese operation, and China Netcom, one of the country’s two major state-owned fixed-line operators.  PCCW, the Hong Kong-based media group, is also an investor in the fund.”

paidContent.org’s Rafat Ali covers even more connections, then adds, “[I]t is all very incestuous.”

It’ll be a while before we see what sort of product comes from this relationship, though.  Will MySpace China resemble the freaks from that “X-Files” episode?  The talented (though strange) banjo-playing boy from “Deliverance”?  It may well be less exciting than either of those possibilities; MySpace China could just be a sparsely populated social network patrolled by cartoon cops.

In the meantime, we’ll just watch, wait, and wonder what sorts of provisions family tree-related software has made for these occurrences.

“The advertising industry is evolving and growing at an incredible pace, moving increasingly toward online and IP-served platforms, which dramatically increases the importance of software for this industry,” said a statement from Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. “Today’s announcement represents the next step in the evolution of our ad network.”

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Seattle, aQuantive is the parent company of Avenue A | Razorfish, Atlas and Drivepm.

It’s share price has already jumped 78% on the news!

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