IPG's Hill Holliday Partners For Audience; Google Display Catching Search; Millennial's IPO Keeps Going And Going

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Active-ating Audience

Boston-based IPG agency Hill Holliday continues to add to its media buying platform (AdExchanger Q&A) capabilities. Yesterday, it was announced that the agency has reached across Charles River into Cambridge to partner on the launch of a new ChoiceStream (AdExchanger Q&A) product called CRUNCH Active Audience. According to the release, “Using a simple, visually engaging in-banner poll, CRUNCH Active Audience invites the consumer to share a specific trait or attitude, thus indicating their affinity towards a brand’s product or message.” From there, first and third-party data take over and help hone a profile for addressing media. Read it.

Showrooming Prevention

Internet Retailer said recently that its research showed 29% of in-store, mobile researchers wind up buying online. In other words, you want to buy a TV, you go in-store to look at it, and at the same time, you punch up the best online offers and then… Read the IR article. Referencing the data, Thi Thumasathit says on the Adchemy blog that mobile retailers need to amp up their mobile search PPC spend because “A mobile smash and grab is not just a lost sale. It’s the loss of an extremely purchase-ready customer. And, because the sale went directly to a competitor, it’s a direct shift in market share. As such, I believe mobile search can make or break retailers.” Read more. As Pew Research also chronicled in January, it’s “showrooming” for the win – or lose.

GOOG Display

In advance of Google’s Q1 2012 earnings release next month, Citi analyst Mark Mahaney reviews GOOG’s prospects in a note to investors and sees sunny skies ahead in spite of regulatory concerns, the integration of Motorola Mobility and social network competitions. As it relates to display, Mahaney says in analyst speak, “Detailed GOOG Segment Analysis Supports 20% Revenue Growth Outlook — Extrapolating from current trends, we see Mobile and Display rising from approx. 18% of GOOG’s Revenue in 2011 to 21%+ in 2012. Given 40%+ growth rates for Mobile & Display, this all but guarantees a strong double-digit revenue growth outlook for Google for the foreseeable future, with 20%+ growth in 2012.” Display is gaining on search for the biggest search player in the world.

Mo Money

The funds expected from Millennial Media’s IPO keeps on going up. Reuters reports that the mobile ad network has raised the pricing for its offering yet again and will now raise $152.5 million instead of a measly $129 million. Read a bit more. In January, the total raise of the IPO was going to be $75 million according to the original S-1. Millennial Media will likely be an active acquirer of mobile ad startups with new and different tech – unless it gets gobbled up, too. The company’s valuation has now reached nearly $1 billion according to TechCrunch.

Signup Mobile

Positioning itself as a mobile signup ad platform, Pontiflex announced yesterday that it has launched a self-service platform called AdLeads that will enable mobile signup ad campaigns. Speaking to Pontiflex’s CPA roots, the release explains “signup ads”: “Signup ads differ from existing ad models because they allow businesses to pay only when people sign up for their ad – not for wasted clicks or impressions.” CPA for the masses. See AdLeads.

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Mo Money, Series C

Media monetization platform for the travel industry, and airlines in particular, Sojern (AdExchanger Q&A), announced that it has raised another $7.5 million. Read it. This is not the usual large round of financing one might see in a Series C round – perhaps enough to tide the company over until sustained profitability? Crunchbase says this brings Sojern’s total raise to $32.5 million. In the press release on the new funding, the company notes “To support Sojern’s continued growth and expansion into audience targeting and data management, the company has embarked on a comprehensive rebranding campaign.”

Attribution Solution

In a press release yesterday, Adometry claims that it has launched the first attribution solution to use viewable ad impression data. The company explains the Adometry Attribute solution, “For example, if a user were served multiple ad impressions, other attribution models would give all impressions some credit. However, Adometry Attribute only assigns credit to viewed ads.” The viewable impression discussion continues to burn. Read more.

Ma Ad Network

Through a partnership with Celtra, AT&T AdWorks has taken its ad network to Foursquare allowing users to “check-in” through a mobile ad banner. Adweek’s Tim Peterson says that AT&am;T’s ad network is growing, too, “AT&T AdWorks’ interests encompass mobile as well as online and TV. In addition to 10 billion monthly mobile impressions, the network serves up 450 billion monthly online impressions and 4 billion monthly TV impressions through the AT&T U-verse service.” Needless to say, cross-channel advertising capability through a single source such as AdWorks will be very compelling to advertisers if attribution can be tightly managed. Read it.

Vote With Ads

Though the media business is relatively small for digital, political ads, it’s growing. And Cox Digital announced that it has expanded its political ad targeting reach by cutting a new deal with David Kenny’s Weather Channel. This follows a similar deal with Yahoo!. Cox Digital prez Steve Shaw tells MediaPost, “What Yahoo brings to the ballot in reach and scale, The Weather Channel brings in breadth and depth among local audiences.” Read more.

Geo Hiring

Mobile app marketing platform Fiksu says that it has opened a new office in Northampton, Massachusetts, as it looks to hire local talent. Given the talent crunch around development, future office space may be increasingly determined by available talent pools that can connect virtually to HQ. Read more. In Fiksu’s case, the Northampton location is not that farfetched in that Fiksu CEO Micah Adler used to work at a nearby university.

You’re Hired!