CONVENIENCE FOR ADVERTISERS AD NETWORKS OFFER REACH
The first Internet advertising network was created in 1996 by the newly formed Internet ad agency DoubleClick Inc. The DoubleClick Network began as a group of about 30 Web sites that the firm represented to advertisers. It was a model that other Internet advertising agencies would emulate. Over the course of its first five years DoubleClick expanded the network of Web sites it represented, segmented it to match the needs of Internet advertisers, and reorganized it to reflect changing market conditions. By April 2001 the DoubleClick Network represented nearly 1,500 Web publishers worldwide. It consisted of 16 different networks. Advertisers could purchase ad space on any individual country network, as well as in categories such as automotive, business, commerce, entertainment, technology, travel, and women and health. The company's premium network was called the Double-Click Select Network. Consisting of high-profile, high-traffic sites, DoubleClick claimed its Select Network reached 48 percent of the U.S. Internet audience.
Other smaller networks compete with DoubleClick. They include the 24/7 Network, operated by Internet ad agency 24/7 Media. The 24/7 Network is a global advertising network represented in 24 countries. It includes high profile, high-traffic Web sites that 24/7 Media represents to advertisers, including more than 400 Web sites in the United States, 80 in Canada, more than 250 in Europe, and more than 30 in Latin America. Through an agreement with China-dotcom Corp., 24/7 Media represents more than 500 major Web sites in Asia. The 24/7 Network is organized into topical channels representing such areas as automotive, business/financial, career, college, entertainment, music, news/information, search engines, sports, and more.
Engage Inc. is a multi-channel marketing company that also operates a global interactive media network. Its integrated network of more than 4,700 Web sites reaches more than half of the U.S. Internet market, according to the company. Engage is a majority-owned subsidiary of CMGI Inc.
ValueClick Inc. employs a different type of model for its network of Web sites. With its cost-per-click (CPC) model, ValueClick only receives payment from an advertiser—and in turn pays a publisher of a Web site—when an Internet user clicks on the advertiser's banner ad. At the end of 2000 ValueClick's network consisted of more than 20,000 small and medium-sized independent Web sites that had agreed to sell their advertising inventory to ValueClick on a non-exclusive basis. According to Jupiter Media Metrix, the ValueClick network reached more than 30 percent of the U.S. Internet population in early 2001, and it delivered more than 40 million ads daily. Through a strategic investment transaction completed in February 2000, DoubleClick owns about 30 percent of ValueClick. In exchange, ValueClick is allowed to use DoubleClick's ad serving technology, known as DART.
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