April 30th, 2007
Push Google off its search advertising throne? Not so FAST!
Another day, another company that claims to be the one that will dethrone $150 billion market cap, and “everyone’s favorite garage band,” Google from its search advertising kingdom.
Who is the latest to put forth the would-be Google slayer, along with potential killer of perennial runner-up Yahoo and slow out of the gate Microsoft?
FAST, an Oslo-based enterprise search company: "Why shouldn’t you be in control of your search and contextual advertising?" The search technology vendor exhorts in touting the “unveiling” of FASTMedia, an end-to-end business platform for media companies:
As a media company, you know that search and contextual advertising is the fastest growing online advertising segment. But how can you tap this explosive revenue opportunity when the "big three" dominate search-based advertising? Is outsourcing your only option or can you compete on your own?FAST AdMomentum is an end-to-end advertising and search monetization solution that gives media companies the control and independence needed to protect and extend online advertising revenue.
- Gain Control & Flexibility. Deliver your own branded advertising experience to advertisers and satisfy them with greater performance and more precise targeting.
- Increase Revenue and Profit. Reap 100% of your advertising revenue and boost profits with a highly configurable revenue engine that supports multiple bid models including auction, CPC, CPM and more.
- Exploit Your Assets. Tune the search relevancy to more effectively exploit your key content assets and increase ad performance.
- Syndicate & Expand. Extend your advertising platform to affiliate sites and alternative channels such as mobile and IPTV.
Indeed, Why SHOULDN’T companies be in control of their own advertising?
That is the question I have been asking IAC owned number five search engine Ask for months!
I spoke at length with Ask CEO Jim Lanzone: “Jim Lanzone’s vision for Ask.com: ‘Real Deal’ Interview” and chatted with IAC CEO Barry Diller about Ask at the Media Summit New York City: IAC CEO Barry Diller on Ask.com.
Last month, I underscored Google, LookSmart power Ask.com advertising, asking “If Ask.com is the “glue” for IAC’s most admired brands, why is it not standing more on its own two Web advertising feet?”
Diller was also asked at the IAC Q4 2006 conference call if it wouldn’t be more advantageous long-term to handle all advertising in-house?
Diller: As far as doing it ourselves, we thought originally and we continue to do work in this area. We do do it ourselves; we do all sorts of ad products inside Ask.com for ourselves, for our own account. But as far as the ad network business, there are, as you know, three players in it currently. I think there probably won't be a fourth. At some point, I can't say what will happen out of the growth of advertising in this area, but right now, I would much, much, much prefer to rent it. I think that we will be well-served by that, certainly for a period of time.
Why? Because “in-house” for Ask is a very small house. The Ask ROI bottom-line calculation is which yields more $$$ for IAC: One hundred percent of what WE can potentially book, or XX% of what we know GOOGLE books?
The Google search advertising crown is indeed firmly bestowed upon Google’s worldwide shoulders.
Not only does Google have a commanding lead in the absolute number of advertisers it can immediately bring to a media site’s contextual table with no cost-of-sales attached, the large pool of AdWords buyers means more advertisers bidding up each others’ prices, so higher CPC fees for all!
I said it to Yahoo’s Panama, and I say it to FAST’s AdMomentum: The way to out Google Google is not by trying to be a more Googley Google.
Google innovated its way to search advertising royalty; It will only be unseated from its throne by superior innovation.
ALSO: CBS Radio to Google, YouTube: No thanks, we built TargetSpot!
