Archive for November, 2009

Right Media Takes Steps to Extend its Lead in the Ad Exchange Marketplace

Monday, November 16th, 2009

We have always been, and continue to be, an entrepreneurial group here at Right Media:  We continually challenge the norm.   We push each other to iterate and innovate– if not through code then through creative solutions.  We challenge, learn, and evolve with our top customers.  In fact, we challenge each other so much I urge people to yell, “challenge” in internal meetings if they don’t agree with something being said- it could be on a position during a heated discussion, could be on a market theory, could be on product prioritization… heck, it could be on what we decide to order for lunch!

In 2005, Right Media established ourselves as the first ad exchange when there was so much friction in the market that it seemed like anyone with an ad server could call themselves an ad network.  Today, we are the largest exchange with tremendous scale.  More than 120,000 active global buyers and sellers and roughly 9 billion transactions pass through the Right Media Exchange every day. It was always our goal to take the installed base of buyers, sellers, and overall marketplace liquidity and continue our maturation towards a more premium and differentiated offering.

Today, online advertising is again at a critical point in its evolution. Consumers are spending more and more of their time online and we as an industry have not effectively shown large marketers why the dollars should shift as well.  Now, that’s changing: The advertising community wants an upscale, high-quality marketplace where audiences can be bought at scale, and in real-time.  Yahoo! and Right Media have been at the forefront of this shift and we will continue to leverage the Exchange to capitalize on this trend.

That’s why I’m excited to announce that Right Media has refined its strategy to become a premium exchange focused on being transparent, differentiated and interoperable.  Our premium supply and demand ad platform will support an ecosystem of leading and differentiated digital advertising companies, including differentiated ad networks, leading advertisers, global ad agencies, premium publishers, data providers, and technology innovators in our non-guaranteed marketplace.

We also will have demand-side platform (DSP) capabilities, which is a marketer-focused buying solution that transparently manages media spend across multiple supply marketplaces.  Our premium ad exchange will enable clients to leverage value-added data across the supply and demand of the Exchange and offer  integration (interoperability) with other exchanges.

To read more about this topic, Advertising Age posted a story today about our new strategy. I hope that you will keep reading our blog for more updates about the Exchange.  And please feel free to tell us what you think by leaving a comment.  As you now know, I love a good “Challenge!”

—Bill Wise, Yahoo! VP/GM, Ad Platforms

Posted in Right Media Exchange, Right Media News | 1 Comment »



A Closer Look at Online Data

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Right Media clients talk shop, spot trends

Everyone knows how powerful online data can be – but not everyone agrees on exactly how to use it. That was the focus of a panel I moderated as part of the Right Media Forum last week.

The panel, “The Power of Online Data, Today and Tomorrow,” looked at the use of data in today’s online advertising industry and helped attendees identify data-driven opportunities, and applications that may exist in their current strategies.

Panelists included:

  • Mike Benedek, Vice President of Business Development, AlmondNet
  • Alan Edgett, Senior Director of Interactive Media, Experian
  • Mark Mannino, Vice President, Supply & Data, MediaMath
  • Steve Sutton, Chief Operating Officer, Ziff Davis Media
  • Mark Zagorski, Chief Revenue Officer, eXelate

This great mix of execs joined in an engaging discussion about major challenges for the industry, ownership of data, government regulation and the role of the Exchange.

Taxonomy was discussed at length on the panel, as concerns about differences in the classification of data came to the forefront.  Panelists debated: Should the industry have a universal taxonomy as a way to help standardize data across the board?  One panelist said that his sales people can’t keep up with the algorithms doing the classifications and, therefore, are not in sync with the different data segmentation occurring in the industry. Another panelist felt that taxonomy creation should not be the role of an exchange, comparing it  to a government that is so  involved in the  mechanics of the economy that it  erodes open nature of the market.

The need for flexibility was another central theme in the discussion. Panelists felt that any standardization or taxonomy would need to be flexible.  Advertisers who focus on performance need to be flexible with the audience segments they target.  Demand aggregators, networks, and publishers need to be flexible with the various data providers they choose to partner with.  Panelist agreed that there is no “one size fits all” data strategy and businesses will need to tolerate constant experimentation and its potential financial impact.

When government regulation was raised, panelists said they supported the efforts of the Network Advertising Initiative and felt confident that decision makers were being educated and moving in the right direction.

Naturally, everyone in the room was curious about future enhancements to the Right Media Exchange.  I know our clients would like our platform to better enable segment exposure and provide more robust reporting and control.   As I said during the discussion, we hear your needs and we are working on them!  I look forward to seeing you at our next event.

–Ryan Maynard, Senior Engagement Manager

Posted in Data Providers, Events, Right Media Exchange | No Comments »



Balancing Act For Ad Exchanges

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

Staying Open While Closing the Door on Harmful Content And Behavior

The following is an excerpt from an AdExchanger.com article by Bennie Smith, Yahoo! VP Exchange Operations/Platform Policy.

Online advertising in the age of media fragmentation does not have to be like a box of chocolates. Both advertisers and publishers should know exactly what they are going to get with every ad impression.

Ad exchanges have played a crucial role in making this possible – by running transparent, fair, and open platforms that have enabled targeted and efficient media buying in the highly-fragmented and ever-expanding media universe. However, the benefits of seamless transactions in an open ecosystem can quickly be eroded (along with your brand equity), if appropriate controls are not put into place.

Threats to the online advertising ecosystem include harmful ad and Web site content, spyware, traffic quality and the emerging and rapidly evolving threat of malvertising (the delivery of malicious code or software via Internet advertisements). These threats have the potential to cause significant harm to all the primary stakeholders in the online advertising ecosystem. Advertisers face the risk of brand erosion and publishers can face user attrition, loss of revenue and public relations risks. Ultimately, consumers are exposed to harmful content and privacy and security risks.

In light of these risks, Right Media remains committed to helping its customers do business in an open ecosystem with greater transparency and control. These issues are not unique to us, but impact the Internet as a whole. In fact, recent malvertising incidents at New York Times and Gawker.com were direct buys and have illustrated the need for every stakeholder in the online advertising value chain to work equally hard and collaborate with each other to address these growing threats.

Our continued investment in protective measures and the implementation of innovative mechanisms are helping Right Media protect participants in the exchange ecosystem from potential harm. For example; in response to new malvertising threats that were observed this year, we made some enhancements to our Creative Tester tool that help us detect and ban creatives that load non-standard file types that can install malicious code by exploiting security vulnerabilities in standard applications that open such file formats; contain an automatic page redirect that is non user-initiated and also identify ads that triggers click streams or click activity without any user interaction. In addition, we continue to educate our customer base about Right Media Exchange tools and policies and how customers can work to prevent the introduction of harmful content, viruses and other malicious code into our ecosystem. By implementing their own controls and being more diligent about whom they do business with, we can work together to preserve our vibrant and secure marketplace.

For the full article, visit AdExchanger.com.

Posted in Ad Networks, Advertisers, Publishers, Right Media Exchange, Technology | 1 Comment »