Advertising and marketing

Do Not Track browser standard: Back on the rails

It looks like development of Do Not Track, an effort to create a standard that'll let people tell Web sites not to track their online behavior, has resumed after a months-long logjam.

Peter Swire, the newly appointed leader of the World Wide Web Consortium's work on Do Not Track, has been attempting to find common ground among very different constituencies including privacy advocates and advertisers. But there's been progress, he said in a blog post.

"Over the past two days, the group has successfully managed to identify a path toward fulfilling our W3C charter: we now … Read more

Microsoft search deal hasn't worked out as Mayer hoped

Marissa Mayer is not yet impressed by Yahoo's search partnership with Microsoft.

In her first investor conference appearance since taking over as Yahoo's chief executive last summer, Mayer told attendees at the 2013 Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference in San Francisco that the pact is not delivering the increased revenue or market share that was expected.

"One of the points of the alliance is that we collectively want to grow share rather than just trading share with each other," said Mayer, according to a Reuters account of the event. "I'm not confused. Our … Read more

Mayer: Yahoo's future is personalization for content, ads

SAN FRANCISCO --The future of Yahoo will be providing personalized user experiences both on mobile and the desktop, according to the company's chief executive officer, Marissa Mayer.

Speaking at the 2013 Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference this morning, Mayer offered another glimpse into the search company's evolving mobile strategy, which will include some consolidation for the existing product portfolio.

"The core of Yahoo's business is to personalize content," affirmed Mayer. But within that content, she continued, is also advertising, which she said can improve the experience when done right.

Mayer suggested that smartphones offer … Read more

Grammy nominees climb in music store rankings

Grammy nominees and winners are getting a post-show bump in music store rankings, while online retailers are riding the coattails of the awards show to higher sales.

Amazon, which tracked the change in artists' rankings after the Grammy's officially ended, found Rihanna, Sting, and Wiz Khalifa to be some of the biggest winners.

The company, as well as Apple and other online music retailers, today is promoting songs and albums by Grammy artists, which is likely helping them move up the rankings.

Rihanna's "Unapologetic" climbed 40 spots, while Sting's "The Very Best of Sting … Read more

Twitter bumps the price of Promoted Trends to $200K

In a sign that suggests healthy demand for Twitter's advertising, the microblogging site has reportedly increased the daily price of its Promoted Trends to $200,000.

The new price, which is a 33 percent increase over the previous price, went into effect earlier this year, according to an All Things D report. The price has increased 150 percent since the program launched in 2010 with a daily price of $80,000.

Twitter promotes the feature as a way for business to increase interest in a brand or product. Promoted Trends appear in Twitter's Trends section to the left … Read more

LinkedIn eyes future as professional publishing hub

LinkedIn spent much of 2012 transforming itself into a place where workers could stay and play a while -- a strategy that paid off handsomely. But the year ahead will be all about making the site the preferred destination for professional content, a transition that could make Wall Street's darling even more bewitching.

The professional network today reported earnings that blew the Street's socks off, so to speak. LinkedIn's stock is trading up close to 10 percent on the after-hours market because the company floored everyone with fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share of 35 cents, revenue of $… Read more

New BlackBerry ad -- that's, um, why they're called mobiles?

I have spent the last few days explaining to those closest to me that, because of my past, I can never become the pope.

I have also told several people I can never climb Everest, turn a snake into a mongoose, or kiss Bar Refaeli.

I attribute this strange burst of negative information to the ad that BlackBerry ran during the Super Bowl.

Should you have missed it, you can't be too disappointed.

However, the company has now released a new ad -- currently running in Canada and the U.K. -- that attempts to insert a positive halo … Read more

Google focuses on going mobile with AdWords revamp

As people increasingly turn to mobile devices for their Web consumption, Google has decided to revamp its keyword advertising service to make it easier for marketers to reach target audiences on different devices.

Google's AdWords Enhanced Campaign aims to make it easier for advertisers to manage bids for ads across a variety of device platforms, locations, and times, the Web giant announced in a company blog post today. AdWords allows advertisers to bid on a given keyword and win premium placement with search results.

Google's goal in retooling AdWords -- a chief money maker for the company -- … Read more

Yahoo reveals advertising deal with Google

The world of online advertising is in a tizzy today.

First Google revamps its AdWords model with enhanced advertising campaigns, and now Yahoo has announced that it is teaming with Google.

The Cupertino, Calif.-based corporation confirmed this afternoon that it has formed a new partnership with Google for "contextual advertising."

This basically translates to targeted advertising in which online ads displayed on Yahoo's digital properties better relate to what the user is looking at currently as well as past search and content patterns.

Specifically, those ads will derive from Google's AdSense for Content and AdMob … Read more