Mobile Innovation

First, Microsoft wins a mobile search and advertising deal that enables them to be the exclusive provider on Verizon Wireless’s entire mobile network, and now it is bulking up on inventory and ad-serving technologies. Quattro Wireless, a Waltham, Mass-based mobile ad network, has entered a strategic relationship with Microsoft Advertising to help advertisers and agencies plan, buy and execute mobile ads as part of their overall campaign.

Going forward, Quattro’s platform will be able to accept traffic from Microsoft Advertising’s Atlas Media Console buy-side ad serving technology. Quattro manages ad inventory for mobile sites, such as Hachette Filipacchi Media, Gawker Media, Cox Newspapers, Def Jam Music, and also gained recognition after working on Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Now ads from Microsoft’s network will be able to be served across any publisher in Quattro’s network.

Steven Rosenblatt, Quattro’s VP of Advertising Sales: “We view our relationship with Microsoft as a watershed moment for the mobile advertising industry…We are seeing unprecedented demand for buying mobile advertising inventory and this critical solution will simplify the process for the advertisers and agencies and revolutionize how they buy, manage and measure their media campaigns.” From Microsoft’s view, Ryan Mackle, director of Display Sales Product Management for Microsoft Advertising, said: “Advertisers are eager to track and measure their digital advertising campaigns holistically, across the PC, mobile devices and other emerging technologies.”

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Posted by Mobile Innovation at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Microsoft has finalized a mutli-million deal with Verizon Wireless for the right to provide the country’s largest carrier with portal, local, Internet search and mobile advertising services. The announcement is expected to take place during Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer’s opening keynote at CES tonight, starting at 6:30 p.m., although Verizon spilled the beans earlier at an investor conference. The search deal was hard fought and lasted nearly two years, in which all three Internet giants Yahoo, Google and Microsoft were first involved, and then more recently, only Google and Microsoft were left. During the negotiations, the WSJ reported that the deal size ranged between $550 and $650 million, making it a significant coup for the emerging mobile search and advertising industry that is just getting off its feet.

The decision by Verizon Wireless is important for a number of reasons. First off, it gives Microsoft a foot in the door, which had been rapidly closing—the other U.S. carriers were already locked up. If the deal went to Google, it would have owned half the market between Verizon and Sprint. If it had gone to Yahoo, it would have been a landslide victory for the Sunnydale company, which already works with AT&T and T-Mobile USA. With Microsoft also in the game, the mobile search industry—especially in the U.S.—is still completely up in the air.

The second thing to point out is the vote of confidence on Microsoft’s behalf that they believe the mobile search and advertising market could be of significant value over a five year period, which is the length of their contract with Verizon. Perhaps it is just buying marketshare, but Medio Systems’ CEO Brian Lent, who provides white-label search services, and to Verizon Wireless specifically, believes differently. “I would suspect that it would be recoupable. Why would anyone would bid that amount?...I think these are not completely unreasonable numbers, given the size of the space. My industry expertise says that over a period of five-ish year period, one should be able to make those types of revenues.”

—Some more details: The deal will last for five years and the first devices are supposed to launch in the first half. Searches will integrate voice commands and location-based services, and results will include maps, directions, traffic information, local business information; movie show times, gas prices and weather. In addition, users will be able to search for full-track songs, videos and games. Microsoft’s Live Search will be available on a device’s home screen, by downloading an app. The company did not say what the financial terms of the agreement were, or whether it also included a side deal in which Verizon committed to selling more Windows Mobile devices.

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Posted by Mobile Innovation at 01:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)