This could be a very
significant move for the behavioral targeting industry as privacy concerns have long kept big portals like AOL from partnering with behavioral targeting providers. However, given the recent spate of
data-marrying ad buys -- notably Google and DoubleClick -- the addition of anonymous user data from such a large publisher to a behavior-based network may no longer be controversial. Indeed, the
addition of AOL will not only add richness to each user segment, the portal's massive reach could even lead BT beyond the "remnant inventory" status pegged to it for so long.
It's this kind of consolidation that backs up eMarketer's prediction that BT will grow from $350 million this year to $3.8 billion by 2011. Expect an acquisition of Tacoda rival 24/7 Real Media to follow.