Yahoo Back to Internet Basics

Today's purchase of ad network BlueLithium by Yahoo is the first major purchase done wholly after the Terry Semel reign, according to the AP, and that means it's an indication of where Jerry Yang is taking things. Behavioral targeting is not only a purely Internet play for advertisers (here's a column I wrote for Jack Myers Media Business Report on the topic), but BT proponents also believe it will take away dollars from traditional broadcast and cable advertisers, who have a lot of reach, and maybe frequency, but not such finely honed targeting.

It also gets down to believing that advertising can be made more of an effective, ROI business than the more traditional "relationship" business it's been in the halls of Hollywood and New York (for publishers as well as broadcasters).

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