Studies: Holiday Joy for E-Mail Marketers (internet.com, October 30th)
According to the results of a variety of recent studies into the medium, a large proportion of online users are likely to be positively swayed in their purchasing decisions this holiday season by opt-in email marketing.

Real Media, 24/7 Media Tie the Knot (internet.com, October 30th)
After negotiations with DoubleClick fell through, ad technology player Real Media has been successfully wooed by 24/7 Media in an acquisition that could make-or-break the struggling company. The combined entity will be known as 24/7 Real Media.

Bin Laden Game's AdWare Annoys Users (Newsbytes, October 30th)
Unfortunately, many so-called marketers have taken advantage of the Sept 11th situation in order to bring attention to their own products, or in ordr to generate revenue through unethical means. This article notes how a downloadable game touted as charitable is causing trouble for thousands of computer users through the simultaneous installation of a difficult-to-remove theftware application. This from a firm (the company behind RankYou and TwistedHumor) whose e-marketing methods have already been tagged as spam.

The Ad Council Moves Ahead With Plans to Reorganize (NY Times, October 30th)
Faced with an entirely different publishing environment post-Sept 11, Advertising Council - the firm assigned the task of planning and distributing ad campaigns on behalf of charity, public service and other nonn-profit groups - has had to rethink its strategies in drumming up support for the causes of the time. As a follow-up to this, many other nnon-profit groups (including the high-profile PETA) have followed Ad Council's lead and readjusted their marketing strategies as noted in this NY Times article.

Why the Web Will Never Be Able to Measure Everything (australia.internet.com, October 30th)
This article highlights one of the most common misconceptions that has plagued online marketing by failing to present an adecquate view of the ROII generated through brand and recall-based online advertising campaigns.

What's Working In Online Marketing (E-Commerce Guide, October 29th)
Alexis Gutzman looks at the course of online adverting's seminal evolution in an attempt to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing the market in the near future.

24/7 Media Courts Real Media Following DoubleClick Breakup (internet.com, October 26th)
Just weeks after DoubleClick's earlier efforts to acquire Real Media fell through, rival New York-based ad network 24/7 Media is throwing its hat into the ring as a possible buyer; offering about $1.8 million in stock for the company and its high-profile OpenAdStream ad serving system. Real's parent company, PubliGroupe, is expected to retaini a minority holding in the combined company, while promising additional funuding if needed at a later stage.

Trying to Dispel the Notion That Ads and Bad News Don't Mix (NY Times, October 26th)
Madison Avenue has long preached to its customers that advertising alongside negative news can have a detrimental or, at the very least, unsatisfactory effect for the advertiser. Given that we're operating in an environment unlike any other, and seeing greatly elevated circulation and ratings figures as the world follows the so-called 'war on terror', the publishing and advertising communities are trying to dispel the established thought.

Trafficmac Lands DoubleClick Deal (internet.com, October 26th)
In an effort to enhance the strength and desirability of its DART ad management system, ad serving industry leader DoubleClick has forged an alliance with ad optmization ASP Trafficmac to employ its technology within DART.

GotMarketing Lands Partners for Self-Serve Email (internet.com, October 25th)
After distribution deals with a number of major players in the online media space, GotMarketing has rapidly risn to prominence in its field. Targeting the small business market, the company's product allows for advertisers to make limited buys through its email network armed with little more than a credit card and a house list.

AdOne, PowerAdz to Merge (internet.com, October 25th)
Rival networks AdOne and PowerAdz are set to merge in a bid to control the niche industry of online classifieds sales.

Spiders and Robots and Crawlers, Oh My! (ClickZ, October 25th)
Here, Tom Hespos discusses some of the practical drawbacks associated with the IAB's plan to provide information to publishers and marketers designed a allowing them to filter invalid spider traffic.

iVillage Says Scale Helps Overcome Ad Slowdown (internet.com, October 25th)
Announcing its first pro-forma profit on increased revenues for the quarter, women-centric online content player iVillage has reported that its niche dominance has positioned it well to prosper during the ad slowdown.

24/7 Media Looks to New Upgrades to Woo Customers (internet.com, October 24th)
Soon after industry leader DoubleClick announced the release of a souped-up version of DART complete with enhanced campaign optimization features, smaller competitor 24/7 Media has announced the enhancement of its Connect ad serving product, in addition to the release of an instant-messaging-driven viral marketing product.

Study: Email Ads to Lead Rebound (MSNBC, October 23rd)
A quiet revolution has apparently taken place this year in the realm of online advertising. While the higher profile revenues generated by banner ads have dipped markedly, the targeted email marketing scene has tripled its revenues this year according to Forrester Research. This is largely due to the medium's synergy with traditional direct mail, which is a results-centric marketing method to which firms often retreat in times of economic hardship.

Real Media Founder's Exit Rouses Deal Chatter (internet.com, October 23rd)
Just months after his co-founder left Real Media to pursue entrepreneurial interests, Gil Beyda has this month announced a similar resignation, sparking rumors of the company's possible sale to 24/7 Media or DoubleClick ini te near future.

Companies Marketing Online in Canada (eMarketer, October 22nd)
A Canadian Marketing Association report commissioned by IBM Canada has found that 86% of the country's large companies, 80% of its medium-sized companies and 65% of Canadian small enterprises have expanded their online presence somewhat during the past year. Most have done so via popular online marketing forms such as banners, interstitials and outbound email, while contests, collaborative tools and the creation of a customized web experience also rate highly.

Agencies Step Up Efforts to Gauge Consumer Attitudes (NY Times, October 19th)
Madison Avenue is stepping up efforts to help marketer clients determine how consumer attitudes and behavior are changing after the terrorist attacks. For more on how agencies are treading carefully during this emotionally-charged environment, read this other NY Times article.

IAB Releases Media Glossary (internet.com, October 19th)
In a precursing move to the development of the group's hotly-anticipated guidelines on ad measurement, the IAB has published a detailed glossary of media terms with an emphasis on those most commonly used in the digital media space. The full glossary may be found here.

B2B Internet Startups Boost Marketing Efforts (internet.com, October 19th)
B2B plays have increased their spending on marketing substantially above those levels experienced in 2000 according to Launch Pad. The bulk of the increase, though, has flowed through direct marketing initiatives - such as emaili marketing and keyword bidding - rather than being spent on brand-building media buys with an eye to the long-term future.

Impressions via 'Sessions' (ClickZ, October 18th)
The New York Times' digital division has taken a bold move towards the altering of standard metrics in measuring online advertising reach by offering its advertisers the ability to purchase reach through user 'sessions', rather than the impression figure that is largely unique to this medium. The hope is that this move will appeal to traditional media buyers and planners, who are more familiar with audience-based metrics than clicks and impressions. More commentary about this issue from another ClickZ contributor may be found here.

Advertising Online: That Was Then, What Now? (eMarketer, October 17th)
The fifth annual report from the Association of National Advertisers has revealed that 79% of US companies advertised online in 2000, which is a significant increase from slightly under 67% in 1999. Companies spent an average of $2.4 million each for e-advertising last year and 50% say that developing and improving brand loyalty was their primary goal of said online campaigns.

Interactive Ads Emerge as AOL-TW's Secret Weapon (internet.com, October 17th)
In a suggestion that both bodes well for the effectiveness of online advertising, and poorly for its demand byy the market, AOL Time Warner has become its own second largest advertiser - and in doing so has seen its subscription revenues skyrocket. The figures noted within this article do highlight, in a very practical sense, the strength of the online medium as a delivery channel of both direct and brand-based marketing messages, while highlighting that the downturn in interactive marketing budgets continues to decline in the wake of Sept 11.

Why Online Advertising Has to Get Better (ClickZ, October 17th)
The title of this article may lead you to believe that it describes an imminent bottom to the market, but this is not exactly the case. Instead, author Jeffrey Graham is making an appeal to publishers and marketers asking that they raise the bar of online advertising, rather than stoop to the delivery of crass, irritating or non-paying ads. Doing so, he suggests, will better position the medium for sustainable growth in the future, while also appeasing the concerns of many net users (some of which are adopting ad blocking software out of the desire to avoid the ad onslaught).

Internet Users Won't Pay For Online Content - Study (Newsbytes, October 17th)
Based on information drawn from a survey of internet users in the UK, Forrester Research has found that there remains strong reluctance withini consumer ranks to paying for the rights to access content online, when similar content may be found elsewhere for free. The report notes that online content plays operate under a different set of ROI variables to traditional media, and that syndications and cross-media plays are the key to success for the larger publishers in the market.

Compaq "Takes Over" Yahoo! Home Page (internet.com, October 16th)
In the second Flash-based ad allowed to effectively 'take over' the prime real estate of Yahoo!'s home page, Compaq has promoted its iPaq handheld devices in a dramatic one-day campaign. The takeover was accompanied by smaller rich-media branding ads for Compaq scattered throughout Yahoo!'s most popular sections, with the most predominant being "powered by Compaq" buttons used to align the strength and reliability of the Yahoo portal with Compaq's brand. Ironically, this is a brand that may soon be phased out as the company completes its merger with Hewlett-Packard.

New York Times to Launch 'Suround Sessions' (internet.com, October 16th)
Still reeling from the devastating effects of the online ad slowdown, the media giant's digitial division has been promoting an innovative new ad product to its advertisers in a bid to move more traditional marketers into the online space. The product involves the delivrey of ads from just one advertiser to each of the site's unique users so as to reinforce the brand messages conveyed by such ads throughout the entire 'session'.

DoubleClick Ups Rich-Media Ante (internet.com, October 15th)
Faced with an increasingly competitive environment following Real Media's demonstration in its reluctance to play ball with the market leader, online ad technology and media firm DoubleClick has released a souped-up version of its DART ad management system (this is version 5.0) that it hopes will increase its lead against rivals Real, Engage and 24/7 Media beyond dispute.

Weather.com Taps Amazing Media For 'Do-It-Yourself' Ads (internet.com, October 15th)
Though Amazing Media has been touting the capabilities of its AdVariant system for just over a year now, it has only recently begun capturing the attention of major partners, such as Weather.com. In this case, Weather.com is using the tool to make its ad inventory available to small businesses, who are able to buy and manage space throughout the property through an online interface - without the need to correspond with sales personnel, and with their purchas facilitated through a simple credit card transaction. UPDATE: eBay has also apparenntly seen promise in this technology, as evidenced within this InternetNews.com article.

ANA Findings Point to Growing Uncertainty Over Web Ads (internet.com, October 15th)
A new survey taken of major marketing players by the Association of National Advertisers has revealed much positive news for the state of online marketing expenditure in a broad evolutionary sense. The effects of Sept 11th and the consequent war against terrorism, though, is expected to see ad expenditure drop through both quarter 4 of 2001 and the first quarter of 2002 as compared to the same periods a year prior. For a special report from the NY Times that also notes the extent to which advertising budgets are being cut as a direct result of the terrorist attacks, click here.

mediaBEAM Dismisses Hack Threat (internet.com, October 12th)
After upsetting the hacking community with its ad-blocking-blocker, mediaBEAM has suffered its first successful hack, made in an attempt to circumvent the system's ability to stop ad-blocking users from accessing ad-supported sites. Since mediaBEAM promises to offer frequent patches not unlike the system favored by anti-virus companies, they claim that hacks and other workarounds will have little effect on the successful application of the product.

DoubleClick Beats Lowered Estimates (internet.com, October 11th)
Although DoubleClick's performance has been reasonable of late, especially considering the pressures applied to the online advertising scene of late, it is important to note that the vast majority of the company's revenues now come from its technology and direct-marketing divisions, with its brand-oriented media division a notable loss-maker.

The Inevitable Underdelivery Problem (ClickZ, October 11th)
ClickZ' Adam Posman presents a few ideas as to how a media buyers may deal with the threat of underserving on campaigns that are time-sensitive.

Questions for Bluestreak CEO Peter Corrao (TurboAds, October 10th)
As Bluestreak continues to strengthen its position as a major player in online ad delivery, measurement and rich-media technological development, TurboAds has quizzed the company's Chief about his views on Bluestreak's position in a struggling, and rapidly-consolidating, industry niche.

Rich-Media: Exploring New Territory (InternetDay, October 10th)
Rich-media has been pushed at web publishers and marketers for about two years now, and though standard technologies such as Flash and Java have gained some ground, the increased expenses associated with running a rich-media campaign have often seen them overlooked. This article notes the continued strength of such features in attracting attention and encouraging interactivity with a marketer's message, as well as highlighting that such campaigns may be designed cheaply.

Yahoo Hires Ad Sales Chief (internet.com, October 9th)
In a crucial juncture to for the former darling of the dotcom scene, Yahoo! has called on an online ad sales veteran (who hails from ZDNet and DoubleClick) to drive growth in the firm's core revenue source.

24/7 Media Launches ASP Ad Serving (internet.com, October 8th)
Suffering online ad rep and technology play, 24/7 Media has beefed up its product range with the official launch of the Connect ASP ad management system.

PCCW Turns Its Back on AdSociety (NET-ADS, October 7th)
The Hong Kong-based telco giant Pacific Century CyberWorks has shut down its online advertising subsidiary, AdSociety, citing continued weakness in the market as justification for the decision that will see about 100 employees lose their jobs, and leave more than 1000 websites without access to a regional advertising representation and management solution.

Interep Companies to Reject CPA Business (NET-ADS, October 5th)
Effective October 6th, the two major ad representation firms managed by Interep Interactive Inc. (those being Winstar Interactive and Cybereps) will no longer accept any cost-per-action campaigns unless there is a minimum cash guarantee made to the rep firms and the sites they represent. This is a risky strategic move given the domination of direct-marketing players in the online ad scene, but is considered by the firm a necessary step in making marketers more accountable for their ability to convert or to otherwise monetize their campaign, rather than leaving the majority of the risk in the hands of the publisher.

DoubleClick-Real Media Talks Hit the Skids Following L90 Deal (internet.com, October 5th)
Taking full advantage of the turmoil presently affecting the online ad scene, leading ad technology provider and outsourced ad representation company DoubleClick has been snapping up heavily-discounted assets from its rivals in what has been described by many as a monopolistic effort to dramatically increase its hold on the ad serving market. PubliGroupe's Real Media division has, however, been resisting the company's low-ball bid for the Real Media OpenAdStream system in the wake of DoubleClick's successful acquisition of L90's technology. Other competitors of the firm have been promoting their own platforms and levels of human service by presenting discounts to former L90 and/or Real Media clients.

Interp Firms Shun CPA Deals (internet.com, October 5th)
In a risky strategic move given the domination of direct-marketing players in the online ad scene, Interep's interactive division - which holds significant stakes in Winstar Interactive, Cybereps and Perfect Circle Media as well as a minor holding in BURST!Media - has issued a message to its various sales forces noting that they should reject any and all CPA-based campaigns that aren't backed by a minimum cash return guarantee. This move is being made in an effort to make marketers more accountable for their ability to convert or to otherwise monetize their campaign, rather than leaving the majority of the risk in the hands of the publisher. And though it does establish Interep's companies as specialist CPM brokers, it is clearly a risky undertakinig by the company in the hope that this decision will stimulate a medium-long term mindset shift regarding the models that should be adopted in the online space.

Video Game Marketing Mania (ChannelSeven, October 5th)
A few weeks from now, Microsoft is planning to release its long-awaited initial foray into the video game console market; a launch that comes just days from Nintendo's big-budget GameCube launch. These concurrent events and the warring that will occur between the marketing departments of each firm bodes well for publishers of teen-oriented and entertainment-centric sites leading in to Christmas.

NAI To Develop 'Web Bug' Standard (internet.com, October 5th)
Responding in part to consumer concerns regarding their privacy online, a group representing several leading ad agencies has set about defining standards to guide the usage of tracking pixels on websites.

ValueClick to Launch Holiday Promotion Targeting Retailers (NET-ADS, October 4th)
With the fourth quarter upon us, ValueClick Inc., a leading provider of online direct marketing solutions, today announced the launch of a holiday promotion targeting retailers that incorporates several email and online components in gathering and maintaining leads for those firms who see their greatest sales activity centered around the holiday season.

Choose Your Own E-Ad Venture (eMarketer, October 4th)
Here, former Real Media chief Dave Morgan exposes the strengths of the tracking and audience measurement products presented by his new startup, True Audience.

Light at the End of Advertising's Tunnel (CyberAtlas, October 3rd)
Focusing mainly on estimates released from media consultant Jack Myers of the Myers Report, this article notes that while advertising across all media will continue to struggle throughout the next few years, a significant uptick could hit the online sector by 2004, as the market in general rebounds, and as advertisers incrasingly designate a larger proportion of their ad budgets to the interactive media.

Forrester Sells Internet AdWatch to Evaliant (internet.com, October 3rd)
Forrester Research has palmed off its popular online advertising tracking service, Internet AdWatch to a European data aggregator. The product is in the same market as those offered by Jupiter Media Metrix and AdRelevance.

The State of Rich Media (TurboAds, October 3rd)
With rich-media technologies at the center of several recent studies, developments and product launches in this industry of late, Pamela Parker estimates that rich-media creatives are increasingly snaring a larger proportion of all online ad inventory delivered.

Cybereps to Represent AccuWeather.com In Sales Agreement (NET-ADS, October 2nd)
Announcing that it has added yet another high-profile web property to its roster of publishers, Cybereps is shaping up to become an increasingly powerful force in online ad sales representation.

IAB, PLI Launch Privacy Ads (internet.com, October 2nd)
A joint effort by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and the Privacy Leadership Initiative is to take advantage of the IAB's new Large Rec and rich-media ad spaces in a large campaign aimed at inform consumers about how best to protect their privacy and security online. The effort is apparently being spearheaded not just to push the new creative sizes, but encourage vigilance and ethics in both consumer response and marketing behaviour in online advertising so as to stave off government regulation.

Study: Online Ads Capturing Greater Share of Overall Budgets (internet.com, October 2nd)
It's been clearly evident that an unbalance has existed between the amount of time that consumers spend exposed to the internet in relation to other media, and the proportion of ad dollars flowing to the rapidly-expanding medium from the coffers of marketers. Now, CyberAtlas has revealed that the gap is slowly closing despite the dramatic overall dip in spending.

DoubleClick Buys L90's Technology Business (AtNewYork, October 2nd)
In an effort to further its lead in the third-party ad serving market, DoubleClick has purchased key assets from its LA-based competitor L90. The deal includes the acquisition of L90's 1700 accounts assoiated with publishers and advertisers who are presently employing the company's adMonitor product. It is expected that DoubleClick will phase the product out, and initiate the migration of its acquired clients to DoubleClick's own DART or AdServer software.

Salon to Charge for News, Political Coverage (internet.com, October 2nd)
Claiming that online ad revenues account for only 50% of the the company's operational budget, Salon.com has restricted some of its most popular editorial sections to subscription-only access in an effort to boost revenues.

DoubleClick In Talks to Acquire Real Media (internet.com, October 1st)
In a deal sure to further DoubleClick's already substantial lead in the online ad delivery and tracking market if successful, DoubleClick has made an offer to Real Media and its parent PubliGroupe to acquire the company's OpenAdStream ad serving solution. This, being the core product of Real Media given that the company recently withdrew its direct interests in the media representation business will see an effective wrapping up of one of the biggest players in the market if it is allowed to proceed.

Mediaplex Launches Optimization Tool (internet.com, October 1st)
Unveiling another element of its product line during the process of its acquisition by ValueClick, Mediaplex is hoping to gain the favor of ROI-focused advertisers. Their new product, MOJO Optimizer, has the ability to adjust weightings of campaigns, placements and individual creatives automatically and in real-time in an effort to continually optimize the campaign's ROI if those returns may be measured according to direct-response variables.

Rich Media Firms Point to Growth (NewsFactor, October 1st)
Though struggling against both a dramatic downturn in online ad spending and a continued resistance by many advertisers to embrace the additional expenses associated with launching a rich-media campaign, Unicast has apparently seen slower than expected growth in the adoption of its product. New studies and industry estimates, though, suggest that a significant uptick may hit the rich-media scene shortly.