U.S. Justice Department Still Eyes Google-Admeld; Interclick's Ad Genome Focus On Data

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Justice Still Looking

Could the acquisition really be rejected? Commenting that the U.S. Department of Justice’s “second request” notice isn’t anything extraordinaary, Google VP Neal Mohan says the continued review of Google-Admeld may be due to the complexity of the display ad industry. And then he provides a few reasons why he thinks display will remain extremely competitive. Read more on the Google Public Policy blog. In a piece on Ad Age, Cross Pixel Media CEO Alan Pearlstein offers his thoughts on the theme and writes, “There are whispers throughout the industry about Admeld clients getting ready to jump ship and find new partners, or that Microsoft will take a renewed interest in the space. I sure hope so — the time is right for any other major display company or technology giant to take on Google.” Good luck – Google has a headstart (after being behind) and is totally focused on display tech with TV ad spend as the $70 billion+ light at the end of the display tunnel. With nearly $3 billion in profits per quarter, it just seems to be about execution at this point. Read more from Pearlstein in Ad Age. I still don’t see this deal getting rejected if for no other reason than if Google-DoubleClick can be approved, how could Google-Admeld get rejected?

The Landscape Placement

In a detailed interview on Adotas, reporter Gavin Dunaway quizzes TRAFFIQ sales and marketing chief about Chris O’Hara about his company’s business as well his company’s placement in the LUMA Partners landscape chart. O’Hara replies, “I don’t think we should put too much emphasis on placement in the landscape chart. Many companies belong in one or more buckets—and some of the logos should appear much larger than others, based on overall impact within the landscape itself. TRAFFIQ, for example, could appear in many of the categories (DSP and Ad Serving being two of them), but I believe there is a revenue threshold to be met before LUMA will place you in multiple buckets.” Read more.

The Ad Genome

interclick has launched a new product called “Genome.” Fear not, interclick has not suddenly morphed into a bio-tech company. Instead, the ad tech company has launched what it says is “the beta release of the first self-service audience recommendation platform.” Now interclick clients can overlay third-party as well as other data points on their campaigns to find additional opportunity and insights. Ads Sweet Ads.

Owning The DSP Publicly

Demand-side platform MediaMath’s investor, Safeguard Scientific, reported its earnings and provided an update on its investment portfolio. For MediaMath, the update included: “MediaMath revenue continues to grow at a double-digit rate in 2011 while the company expands its domestic and international operations in Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Washington, D.C., Ontario, Canada and London. Additional offices are planned later in 2011 in Latin America and Asia. (…) Safeguard has deployed $15.7 million of capital in MediaMath since July 2009 and has a 23% primary ownership position.” Read more on Safeguard’s Q2. Comparing it to its Q1 release, the new MediaMath info is the growth rate and a one percent increase in ownership stake for Safeguard. See Q1.

ATDs And The Interests

Marco Bertozzi, Managing Director EMEA at Vivaki Nerve Center, has put together his thoughts on the debate around conflict-of-interest and agency trading desks (ATDs) and published an essay on his personal blog. He sees conflict of interest within technology company strategies and remarks, “Conflict of interest is doing what you have to do to stay afloat in one of the most competitive eras of all digital times vs doing what’s best for our clients.” Read more.

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Manage My Tag

Led by former WebSideStory/Omniture members, Tealium has launched a new self-service product in the increasingly competitive tag management space aimed at marketers. ClickZ’s Susan Kuchinskas reports, that Tealium’s customers already include Cisco Systems, Dreamworks, Advance Auto Parts and others. Read more.

Infographic Thursday

Today we have an infographic pointing to companies whose ex-employees launch their own startups and attract the most venture capital. See the graphic-data melange. And then, read Geekwire’s commentary.

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