Yahoo, WPP Partner

Perhaps this deal has been scheduled for months, but it seems that a little pressure has once again worked (semi-) wonders.  As letters to and from Carl Icahn sail around, Yahoo announced a partnership with ad giant WPP this morning.

"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.