• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 5, 2007

Consumers might assume that CNN.com's latest Web 2.0 iteration -- including a cleaner layout, blog-like interface, and spotlight on video -- was all meant for them.

Not so, said David Payne, senior vice president and general manager of the site: "Literally, the first stop we made when redesigning the site was to agencies like Avenue A and Digitas to get a sense of what they wanted, and the trends they thought were most important to consider."

The redesign, which launched earlier this week, was planned first and foremost to please advertisers, Payne insisted, and less cluttered and cleaner experiences were at the top of agencies' wish lists.

"Advertisers want their ads to pop, which means getting them above the fold in an uncluttered environment," Payne explained.

New features include "one-page integrated story-telling, the largest Flash video player of its kind, local coverage, better weather, blog links, commenting, and free live video for breaking news," according to Payne.

While publishers, especially those trading in video alone, are busy looking for alternatives to the much derided pre-roll, Payne insisted pre-rolls can work if executed properly.

"If it's good content, executed property, a pre-roll can be very powerful for the advertiser and the user," he said.