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A UK company called PowerLinks is launching what it claims to be the industry’s “first and only real-time ad-serving technology that enables ad agencies to buy and manage In-image and In-text advertising, while allowing premium publishers to control ads served in their pages.”
The premium publishers referred to include IDG, SportSyndicator and Net Communities, the ad network of tech sites run by my old chum Andy Evans.
Andy says: “What stands out about the PowerLinks technology is that publishers have full control over their own inventory, as campaigns can be easily set up, managed and modified on the fly through its fluid dashboard interface.”
I only dimly understand these things but one of the grouses from publishers about online exchanges is they prove to be dumping grounds and, despite all the promises of extra revenue, just end up driving the online price down, the good with the bad.
PowerLinks has already executed campaigns for some big brands including IBM, HP, Orange and Visa. It claims they have enjoyed improved ad engagement and conversion.
Powerlinks COO and co-founder Mike Harty (left) says: “A legacy of no control, poor targeting and inadequate measurement has meant that contextual advertising has failed to deliver on its promise, until now. It is no wonder that most advertisers haven’t taken contextual advertising seriously.”
If Harty and co can indeed help to unlock the contextual box (displaying ads relevant to a user’s interests as opposed to any old stuff) they may indeed be on to a winner.
