• IAB: 3Q Spending Up 11% From Year-Ago by Mark Walsh

    Online ad spending in the third quarter reached $5.9 billion--up 11% from the year-earlier period, but remaining essentially flat for 2008, according to the latest report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau. ...Read the whole story

  • Advertisers Hedge Bets On Media Options, Odds Improve For Online Media Brands by Joe Mandese

    Amid weakening economic conditions, U.S. ad executive plan to hedge more of their bets when planning and committing advertising budgets across the media over the next six months, according to the Fall 2008 edition of a semi-annual study tracking the economic perceptions of top marketers and ad agency media executives. The study, the Media Economy Report by Advertiser Perceptions Inc., finds that U.S. ad executives are expanding the number of "media brands" they are considering to buy over the next six months to an overall total of 53 from 46 in API's last survey in the Spring and 48 in ... ...Read the whole story

  • social networks Facebook Adding 'Fan' Pages To Public Search Listings by Mark Walsh

    In a potential boost for marketers, Facebook will now show in public search listings that branded Facebook Pages users have designated as their favorite brands. So if someone is a fan of the Gap, that will appear in a search listing and link back to the company's Facebook Page. The new feature could help drive traffic to the more than 150,000 sites marketers and others have set up on Facebook. The expanded public search entries include links to up to five Facebook Pages someone is a fan of. ...Read the whole story

  • Blockshopper Calls In The Cavalry To Defend Against Suit by Wendy Davis

    A high-powered First Amendment attorney has agreed to represent real estate news site Blockshopper, which is being sued by law firm Jones Day for trademark infringement lawsuit for having linked to the firm's Web site. The attorney, James Klenk of the large Chicago law firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, has long counted mainstream news organizations like The Chicago Tribune among his clients. The move comes just days after federal district court judge John Darrah in Chicago declined to dismiss the case. ...Read the whole story

  • social media HBO Digs Teeth Into 'True Blood' Fans by Laurie Sullivan

    HBO will release several widgets today that should hook fans deeper into "True Blood," a television series from the Southern Vampire Mysteries supernatural/mystery books by Charlaine Harris that has attracted numerous loyal fans. The widgets were developed by Wetpaint, a Seattle-based wiki that supports 1.2 million sites. About 100 are branded by Fox, Showtime, Discovery, T-Mobile and others. Dubbed "Droplet" to signify a drop of paint, or in this instance, a drop of blood, the widgets offer "True Blood" fans three ways to take content from the HBO series to post on social networks, from MySpace and Facebook, to iGoogle ... ...Read the whole story

  • social networks Meredith Invests In Real Girls Media Network by Gavin O'Malley

    Positioning itself as the premiere online destination for women ages 25-54, Meredith Corp. has made a minority investment in the Real Girls Media Network. The San Francisco-based Real Girls Network is made up of about 30 female-focused communities and social networks, which will add about 3 million unique visitors to Meredith's existing stream of roughly 12 million unique visitors a month. ...Read the whole story

  • CraveOnline Partners With Universal by Tanya Irwin

    CraveOnline.com is partnering with Universal Entertainment for a contest offering readers the chance to meet "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" and "Pan's Labyrinth" director, Guillermo del Toro. The nearly 7-year-old aggregator has spent much of its attention this year focused on acquisitions in the gaming and sports genre. ...Read the whole story

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