Kids, Teens and Virtual Worlds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2007

It's a virtual, virtual world after all.

The Walt Disney Company's $350 million purchase of Club Penguin signals a new focus of attention for marketers and media companies targeting kids and teens online.

Virtual worlds are becoming more frequent destinations as the percentage of children and teens who use the Internet increases.

"For marketers trying reach kids and teens on social networking sites, there is a new game in town: virtual worlds," said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report, Kids and Teens: Virtual Worlds Open New Universe.

"Of course, virtual worlds are not new, but the level of development activity, venture capital investment and consumer interest in virtual worlds is unprecedented," she said.

Club Penguin is one of the fastest growing virtual worlds for young children. As of August 2007, it had 12 million registered users and 700,000 paid subscribers, according to Nielsen//NetRatings.

According to eMarketer estimates, 41.5% of children ages 3 to 11 will use the Internet at least once a month in 2007. In total, 14.9 million children will go online in 2007, rising to an estimated 16.6 million in 2011.

Among teens, eMarketer estimates 76.4% will go online at least once a month in 2007, rising to 87.1% by 2011.

Overall, children and teens make up 18.2% of all US Internet users.

"eMarketer estimates that 24% of the 34.3 million child and teen Internet users in the US will use virtual worlds at least once a month this year," Ms. Williamson said. "And by 2011, 53% of them will be going virtual."

As more kids and teens start to use virtual worlds, their viewpoint on the Web changes, too.

"They are growing up not only with social networking but also with the ability to interact with people, shop, learn and play in a graphic environment," Ms. Williamson said. "Flat Web pages with clickable links and banner ads may pale in comparison."

Younger kids are getting used to a graphical representation of a social network, Jonathan Collins, executive producer of virtual worlds for MTV, said in an interview with eMarketer.

"They're going to feel a social network that doesn't have [that] element is missing something," Mr. Collins said.

eMarketer expects that virtual worlds — particularly those for kids and teens — will see an increased level of interest from marketers in the next few years.

"The intense activity in virtual worlds for kids and teens is only a microcosm of the larger development work being done in virtual worlds," says Ms. Williamson. "Many believe that the graphically rich environment of virtual worlds will transform how consumers shop, communicate and browse the Internet."

Kids, Teens and Virtual Worlds

SEPTEMBER 25, 2007

It's a virtual, virtual world after all.

The Walt Disney Company's $350 million purchase of Club Penguin signals a new focus of attention for marketers and media companies targeting kids and teens online.

Virtual worlds are becoming more frequent destinations as the percentage of children and teens who use the Internet increases.

"For marketers trying reach kids and teens on social networking sites, there is a new game in town: virtual worlds," said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report, Kids and Teens: Virtual Worlds Open New Universe.

"Of course, virtual worlds are not new, but the level of development activity, venture capital investment and consumer interest in virtual worlds is unprecedented," she said.

Club Penguin is one of the fastest growing virtual worlds for young children. As of August 2007, it had 12 million registered users and 700,000 paid subscribers, according to Nielsen//NetRatings.

According to eMarketer estimates, 41.5% of children ages 3 to 11 will use the Internet at least once a month in 2007. In total, 14.9 million children will go online in 2007, rising to an estimated 16.6 million in 2011.

Among teens, eMarketer estimates 76.4% will go online at least once a month in 2007, rising to 87.1% by 2011.

Overall, children and teens make up 18.2% of all US Internet users.

"eMarketer estimates that 24% of the 34.3 million child and teen Internet users in the US will use virtual worlds at least once a month this year," Ms. Williamson said. "And by 2011, 53% of them will be going virtual."

As more kids and teens start to use virtual worlds, their viewpoint on the Web changes, too.

"They are growing up not only with social networking but also with the ability to interact with people, shop, learn and play in a graphic environment," Ms. Williamson said. "Flat Web pages with clickable links and banner ads may pale in comparison."

Younger kids are getting used to a graphical representation of a social network, Jonathan Collins, executive producer of virtual worlds for MTV, said in an interview with eMarketer.

"They're going to feel a social network that doesn't have [that] element is missing something," Mr. Collins said.

eMarketer expects that virtual worlds — particularly those for kids and teens — will see an increased level of interest from marketers in the next few years.

"The intense activity in virtual worlds for kids and teens is only a microcosm of the larger development work being done in virtual worlds," says Ms. Williamson. "Many believe that the graphically rich environment of virtual worlds will transform how consumers shop, communicate and browse the Internet."

Starwood launches Starwoodpro.com

September 13, 2007

To initiate the programme, the company has introduced a website StarwoodPro.com.

Starwood recognises that travelers are increasingly turning to travel professionals for the personal relationship and for a trusted source of information.

“With the launch of the StarwoodPro website, we at Starwood continue to invest in the increasingly important business relationship with travel professionals, giving them the tools and information they need to compete in a rapidly changing travel landscape,” said Chris Austin, Vice President, Global Customer Partnerships, Leisure and Luxury Sales.

Founded on five pillars – Access, Knowledge, Rewards, Compensation and Communication – StarwoodPro.com establishes a sophisticated, user-friendly interface between Starwood and travel professionals.

The StarwoodPro.com website delivers easily accessible content and information on deals, rates and product information, commissions, sales contacts and comprehensive hotel and brand information. In addition, event details and news about on-going programme enhancements and content development will be available.
Equipped with powerful search and booking tools, the StarwoodPro website gives travel professionals multiple ways to find hotels that will meet their clients’ specifications.

According to Starwood, agents can plug in search criteria including brand, city, hotel amenity and special interests such as skiing or golf. Travel professionals can also check the status of client reservations, research room rates and special offers, and find information on education and marketing programmes. A click to call feature provides instant access to speak with a reservations agent at any time during the process.

“With nine distinct brands and over 850 properties available to the traveler, StarwoodPro simplifies the daunting task of pairing the right clients with the right brands, appropriately identifying what experience will best satisfy their specific needs and desires,” stated the company.
Related Link: StarwoodPro.com

Online Travel and Demographics

MAY 16, 2007

The 55-and-older crowd isn't about to spend retirement tending the garden.

A February 2007 Hitwise study found that slightly more women than men visit online travel sites, and that nearly a quarter of visitors are ages 55 and older.

The age distribution is worth noting because lifestyle trends are altering the types of trips people take and the way they plan and book travel. Those 55 and older will increase substantially as a percentage of the population during the next 10 years. Yet Web-based resources tailored specifically for that group have been lacking.

Don Birch of Abacus International said in the June 2006 EyeforTravel newsletter that "we're seeing the emergence of a new generation of older travelers who are healthy, active, street-wise and have unprecedented spending power. This is a lucrative segment but one which has specific needs."

Another online travel study conducted in February 2007 by Nielsen//NetRatings also tracked about a quarter of visits as coming from those ages 55 and older. Nearly half of visitors were ages 45 and older, pointing toward even more growth in the 55-and-older group during the next 10 years.

Youth travelers ages 16 to 24 are another large but underserved market. They now represent more than 20% of all international visitors, according to a study by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Youth & Student Educational Travel Confederation (WYSETC).

The study, cited in March 2007 by TravelMole, stated that "compared with average tourists, adventurous young backpackers stay longer, spend more, seek out alternative destinations and enjoy a wider mix of travel experiences."

Over $700 billion was spent on travel in the US in 2006, according to the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA). Travel spending is expected to rise through 2009, but at decreasing annual rates. The TIA said the slowdown will come from the stabilization of travel prices, softer demand and a general slowdown in consumer spending.

AdSense for Mobile Goes Live

Google has officially announced the debut of AdSense for Mobile, bringing its ubiquitous ad format to mobile Web pages, reports TechCrunch.

AdSense for Mobile will work very much like traditional AdSense. Advertisers will be able to bid, through an auction system, for ad placement on mobile-friendly pages. The new program is specifically meant for online publishers who have optimized their sites for mobile display or who offer mobile-friendly versions.

Just days ago, Google announced the availability of AdWords for the mobile platform.

Mobile Ad Spending Boom on the Horizon, says Myers

By Fred Aun , September 18, 2007

Slow to catch on, mobile advertising is about to enter its heyday, according to the latest ad spending projection from The Jack Myers Media Business Report.

The forecaster believes advertisers are currently spending about $500 million annually on mobile advertising but will increase that amount by 120 percent next year and reach about $1.1 billion.

The spending won’t stop there, said report publisher Jack Myers. He estimates another 120 percent boost in mobile spending for 2009, meaning marketers will shell out about $2.4 billion to dangle their goods and services in front of mobile device users. According to his forecast, 2009 should be the year mobile advertising draws 1 percent of the $254 billion total ad spend.

“Mobile advertising, in 2005, was at virtually the same level as gaming advertising," said Myers in an interview. “It was growing at a fairly parallel rate with gaming.” However, if his projections prove correct, mobile ad spending will grow twice as fast as game ad spending in 2009.

While it will not come close to the growth rates of either mobile or game ad spending, general Internet advertising -- including search and video -- is still on the rise. Myers projects online spending to increase 20 percent, to $16.7 billion, this year. Similar growth rates should follow, according to Myers: Online/Internet should see 24 percent gains in 2008 and 28.5 percent growth in 2009.

He said video advertising will be the heavy hitter of the online advertising lineup. “Search growth is slowing, but everything to do with video is accelerating,” said Myers. While monetization of YouTube and other user-generated video is a hot topic these days, Myers said the big growth in online video ad spending will benefit large, commercial sites. “More the CBS, Disney professional type video,” he said.

While online advertising is growing, it still amounts to a small slice of overall marketing budgets. “In 2007, online represents 7.2 percent of total advertising and advertising represents 31 percent of total marketing,” said Myers. Noting that online represented only 5.3 percent of total advertising in 2005, Myers predicts it will have doubled to 10.5 percent by 2009.

Myers forecasts overall media advertising will increase 6.9 percent in 2008 and 3.1 percent in 2009, and his report notes categories untracked by some other forecasters, such as cinema, mobile, games, branded entertainment, satellite radio and custom publishing, are expected to collectively grow 20.3 percent this year, 18.4 percent in 2008 and 18.5 percent in 2009.

Meanwhile, Myers projects newspapers will sustain the largest declines in ad spending. He said the papers will lose 4.6 percent in ad revenues in 2007, 2.4 percent in 2008 and 4.5 percent in 2009.”

YouTube-Friendly Cams for Video Nation

SEPTEMBER 19, 2007 - eMarketer.com

Marketing to user-generated content creators.

Many video cameras are being marketed to consumers as "YouTube-Friendly" devices that are ready to work with the video-sharing Web site right out of the box.

That these cameras are being sold specifically for making videos to post on YouTube highlights the popularity of user-generated videos and the rising number of US amateur videographers overall. An ABI Research study found that 16.2% of US Internet households have a digital camcorder.

"With the dramatic rise of YouTube as a distribution vehicle for homemade videos, it makes perfect sense for consumer electronics manufacturers to incorporate YouTube functionality into their digital video cameras and market them accordingly," said eMarketer senior analyst Paul Verna.

By saving a few conversion steps, camera makers have eliminated an important hurdle between users' footage and their computers, Mr. Verna said.

"It's a case of giving people what they want, and the likely result will be an increase in both the penetration rate of video cameras and the rate at which Internet users post videos on YouTube," he said.

User-generated video viewers far outnumber creators.

The number of content creators is likely to grow, judging by a Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates study commissioned by Hill & Knowlton. PSB found that 41% of adult consumers would like to use a personal computer for creating or editing video or audio.

Wary Social Networkers Protect Identities with False Information

Nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of social networking site users in the UK are reportedly worried about the safety of their personal data.

With that in mind, one-third (31 percent) have entered false information about themselves to protect their identities, according to a survey by emedia's RapidResearch service, writes MarketingCharts.

Other findings from the UK survey:

* Some 81 percent of those surveyed use networking sites.
* Users of social networking sites visit these sites on a regular basis, and almost half of them (48 percent) admit using these websites at work.
* Nearly one in four (24 percent) log in every day, with half of them logging in several times a day.
* Up to 45 percent of users log in at least once a week.
* The top five websites respondents have heard of are MySpace (89 percent), YouTube (88 percent), Friends Reunited (81 percent), Facebook (73 percent) and Bebo (51 percent).
* The most popular sites among users are Friends Reunited (47 percent), YouTube (42 percent), MySpace (39 percent), Facebook (26 percent) and LinkedIn (19 percent).
* Respondents keep in touch with various types of contacts in their networks, including friends (46 percent), colleagues (24 percent) and clients, or potential clients (8 percent).

emedia-social-network-uses-current-potential.jpg

* Those surveyed visit social-networking sites for personal and professional reasons: 67 percent contact old friends and reinforce existing friendships; over one in ten (11 percent) use them for business purposes.
* 87 percent of respondents think social-networking sites can be used for business purposes, including networking (65 percent), exchanging ideas (58 percent), getting advice (44 percent), recruitment (43 percent), research (35 percent) and selling (31 percent).
* Half of users find advertising on social-networking sites intrusive.
* 72 percent of users said they have opted out of email newsletters from social networking sites.

Travel meets Web 2.0: a match made in heaven

Published: September 21 2007
By Joe Lichtenberg
iMediaConnection.com

With the advent of Web 2.0, travel companies are realizing they must incorporate rich media and other tools in order to enrich the customer experience.


Just as many people wouldn't think of buying a new toy like a plasma TV or a laptop without first checking online customer reviews and comments, it seems that many people wouldn't dream of booking a vacation to a new location without first reading online reviews from travelers who have been there, viewing rich media such as virtual video tours, and reaching out to other travelers online to ask questions.

This is not news to the travel industry. A recent survey on the adoption of social media found that the travel industry is well ahead of other sectors. According to the survey, 73 percent of travel companies plan to invest in social media over the coming year. The pre-event survey for Online Marketing 2007, which was held London's Business Design Centre on June 26-27, also found that 66 percent of travel companies name social media as the biggest growth area for marketing in the coming year.

This should come as no surprise, considering that recent research by Compete, Inc. found that consumer-generated content already influences $10 billion a year in online travel bookings.

In fact, more than 66 percent of travelers surveyed said they consider this content more credible than reviews from professionals or information from the brands themselves, and that it impacts their purchase decisions.

And most experts are in agreement as to where this is taking the travel and hospitality industry:

* Chris Holdren, vice president of global web services for Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide said, "Price is still very important to all guests -- it's still a critical element -- but the evolution has been to be able to show what kind of experience you get for the price."

* Jasper Malcolmson, director of Yahoo! Travel, said, "People want experiences, recommendations and connectivity."

* "Ad speak and market speak are dead," said Dale Brill, CMO at Visit Florida, the Sunshine State's official tourism unit. "Consumers don't want to hear ad copy. They want to hear first-person from people who are out there."

This is what the travel 2.0 revolution is all about, and consumers are leading the way. Vendors, including airlines, hotels, destination spots, etc., that integrate social media into their marketing efforts not only reach out to new travelers but also create stronger relationships with their existing customers.

So, who can we learn from for some ideas? There are already quite a few travel and tourism companies that have interesting implementations of web 2.0 services. Here are a few to note…

UGC at Starwood Hotels
Starwood's Sheraton Hotels' recent transformation of its website into a social platform has been touted as one of the first hotels to embrace social media and feature user-generated content. Sheraton.com's global neighborhood invites visitors to share stories, photos and advice about a destination.

"It's our foray into the social networking world," Nadeen Ayala, a Starwood spokeswoman, said. "The most important thing for travelers is word of mouth…other people's experiences."

To enhance the loyalty of their "Preferred Guests," Starwood Hotels launched TheLobby.com, a content-rich daily travel blog designed to achieve two primary goals:

(1) To create an emotional connection and foster a sense of belonging among the frequent travelers who participate in Starwood Preferred Guest.

(2) To attract all travelers in search of exclusive, insider information on travel, destinations, etc.

"It's all about fostering a sense of community for our members where we can showcase and celebrate their experiences and passion for travel and provide access to great 'insider' editorial content," said Robin Korman, VP of loyalty marketing for Starwood.

TripAdvisor takes peer reviews to the next level
Anyone who doubts the power of word-of-mouth, peer reviews and community should take note of the recent announcement from TripAdvisor that its site now features 10 million user reviews (double the amount it had a year ago), 20 million monthly visitors and six million members.

Riding this success, TripAdvisor has taken the idea of peer reviews a step further by enabling members to get travel advice from trusted peers rather than from unknown users.

TripAdvisor's "traveler network" tools let members access their own email address books through the TripAdvisor site and identify any contacts who are fellow TripAdvisor members. Members can then invite contacts to join their personal network to share itineraries, advice and recommendations. Says TripAdvisor’s Christine Petersen,

"You're more likely to have confidence you're making the right decision if you know the source," TripAdvisor’s Christine Petersen said.

Best Western goes to the desktop
Southwest Airlines has DING! Expedia.com has fare alerts. Recently, Best Western International launched its own desktop application with KnockKnock.
KnockKnock enables consumers to reserve hotel rooms, retrieve information on the brand's loyalty program, receive special offers, even check the weather, directly from their desktops, without having to navigate to their website.

"From our perspective, the web is our No. 1 distribution channel, so we're always looking to innovate," said Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president of marketing and sales. "With KnockKnock, we want customers to have more engagement with our brand. It provides the opportunity for us to communicate specials, and it will be very rich with promotions."

Carnival Cruise Lines' interactive experience
How do you describe a Carnival Cruise to someone who has never been on one? An interactive online experience is a great place to start. This is precisely what FunshipIsland.com is all about.

Launched in July, FunShipIsland.com is a virtual world where visitors can experience a Carnival cruise first hand. According to Christine Arnholt, VP of marketing services with Carnival Cruise Lines, in the first day it launched, FunshipIsland.com attracted more than 200,000 unique visitors, with many of them spending more than an hour on the site.

''I do think the whole video experience piece is going to be more and more of a requirement online because people are willing to buy more and more online, but they want to understand, get a better feel of exactly what it is that they're buying,'' said Susan Kidwell, vice president at Avenue A | Razorfish, which works with Carnival Cruise Lines.

Carnival is not resting on its FunShip laurels. According to a Miami Herald article, John Heald, Carnival Freedom's cruise director, began a blog in March and it has become so popular that there is a ''blogger's cruise'' scheduled for Jan. 19, 2008, for fans of his blog, which recently attracted more than a million visitors.

In February, CarnivalConnections.com, a social network space for people who want to plan Carnival vacations and write reviews, was started. Later this year, the site is planning to grow into more of a social networking tool where cruisers can upload photos of their trips.

When CarnivalConnections.com first launched, Carnival was concerned about the cruise reviews.

"Just like every brand, everybody is so worried that someone might say something negative out there, right?" Kidwell said. "Well there are plenty of places to say something negative about your brand. So thinking that you're going to stop that is kind of goofy, quite honestly."

When one cruise reviewer posted an angry comment at CarnivalConnections.com because the ship went to an unscheduled port to avoid a storm, other cruise reviewers defended Carnival, Kidwell said:

"As a brand, it is so much more powerful to have people say, 'Wow, it was a great experience. And, yes, they took me to another port, but I loved that port just as well,' versus corporate marketing coming out and saying it," she said.

Yahoo! TripPlanner goes social
Yahoo! Trip Planner offers travelers the ability to create and share a comprehensive, interactive archive of personal travel experiences. Users can create travel journals complete with photos, plan and log their trips on an interactive map, and they can add notes, reviews and ratings of places, hotels and sight-seeing destinations they have visited.

"At Yahoo, we believe that social search tools and algorithmic search tools will start to coalesce,” Jasper Malcolmson of Yahoo! Travel said. "Machines alone can't help individuals find information as well as other individuals together with machines."

Expectations from consumers in online travel have changed in unprecedented ways, and it has changed the playing field for vendors.

While customers used to rely on the web primarily to compare prices, Web 2.0 is offering travelers more credible, informative and engaging tools to help them create the perfect trip. And travel companies are realizing they must incorporate a variety of rich media, social media and other relevant tools in order to provide the experience their customers are coming to expect.

Youngsters Favor MySpace/Facebook Equally

Mike Shields - MediaWeek.com 9.20.07


The youngest, most active social networking devotees account for a disproportionate amount of the traffic on the two top sites in the category--MySpace and Facebook--and they don’t favor either brand.

According to a new report issued by Nielsen//NetRatings, U.S. Web users aged 12-17 who regularly visit both MySpace and Facebook spend more time on these sites than users who visit just one site or the other. In August, those dual Facebook/MySpace users spent 26 percent more time on Facebook – or 93 minutes per month - than did the average Facebook-only users, who averaged just 74 minutes.

And similarly, those nondiscriminate social networkers spent 20 percent more time on MySpace – or a whopping 398 minutes - than the site’s exclusive users, who averaged 331 minutes. “Teens who enjoy social media are intensive users and highly engaged,” said Jason Lee, media analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings. “They are venturing onto multiple networks to experience new features and broaden their connections.”

A large portion of the social networking community jumps back and forth between different sites, found Nielsen – particularly teens. For example, 80 percent of Facebook visitors in August also visited MySpace. “Teens continue to interact with friends on MySpace, but have not hesitated to follow their peers to the latest social networking brand. At this point, each site has a unique offering, and teens are happily visiting both.”

Texting Growing More Common

SEPTEMBER 20, 2007

BOOMERS TXT 2

More than two-thirds of US adult mobile users can send and receive text messages, according to InsightExpress.

The company found that while Gen Y texts the most, three-quarters of 45-to-54-year-olds can also text.

"Mobile technology is pervasive, impacting the lives of consumers across generations," said Joy Liuzzo, director of mobile research at InsightExpress, in a statement. "This widespread acceptance and appeal is precisely what makes the mobile market attractive to both B2B and B2C businesses."

More than four in 10 Gen Y mobile users text daily, according to InsightExpress. A little over one-sixth of younger Boomers and 10% of older Boomers said they text daily.

An M:Metrics study in June found that 41.6% of mobile users had texted within the past three months.

The number of mobile users who text is important because text ads are among the most accepted by mobile users.

An Ingenio-Harris Interactive study conducted in March and April 2007 found that mobile users were generally opposed to mobile ads. Still, a third of respondents said that sponsored text links were at least somewhat acceptable.

September 19, 2007
Google Program Enlists Mini-Sites as Selling Tool for Advertisers
By LOUISE STORY

Google is seizing on the popularity of widgets — small online tools that function like mini-Web sites — for its latest push into advertising.

The online giant will announce today a Gadget Ads program that will provide tools for advertisers to run widget ads in Google’s AdSense network.

Marketers can use space within these display ads on Google’s network to show videos, offer chats with celebrities, play host to games or other activities. If consumers like the widget ad, they can save it onto their desktops or on their profile pages online on sites like Facebook and MySpace.

The new widget ads represent a more aggressive push by Google to attract big brand advertisers who like flashy ad units rather than the simple text ads commonly run in Google’s ad network.

One big advantage of the technology is that the consumer does not have to click through to a Web site. A weather widget, for example, would constantly update the weather report in a particular area. Similarly, marketers could feature content to attract consumers while constantly updating their own messages.

More than 48 percent of Internet users in the United States — over 87 million people — now use widgets, according to comScore, the online measurement company. Some of the most popular widgets on Facebook, for example, are the “Top Friends” tool, which allows people to go to their best friends’ profiles with a single click, and iLike, which lets users add music to their profiles.

“Consumers are pulling in content from multiple sources” said Christian Oestlien, a business product manager at Google who is overseeing the new ad program. “It is what we are calling the componentization of the Web. The Web is sort of breaking apart into smaller pieces.”

Many widgets have been built by media outlets, like Lucky Magazine’s shopping widget, which features hot fashion and beauty products. And some companies like Slide are developing networks of widgets made by individuals that advertisers can place ads within.

But consumer brands like Sierra Mist and Honda Civic have also been creating their own widgets as a way of providing content or tools to potential customers. Google is hoping marketers will pay to place these widgets throughout its AdSense network.

Advertisers bid for keywords to place their widget ads in Google’s network in the same way they do other Google ads. Since many users will interact with the ads within the ad units and not click through, Google has developed a new interaction measure to document the interest in the ads.

Google tested its Gadget Ads program this summer with a group of 50 marketers. To encourage more advertisers to make such ads, Google is offering to be host of videos for the ads in YouTube’s servers — a cost-saving for advertising agencies. And Google provides tools for updating the ads, even if marketers do not bid for ads in Google’s network. Marketers pay Google only for the ads that run in its networks and not for any downloading or saving of those ads that consumers may choose to do.

“We’re not trying to monetize every single event that happens in a creative,” Mr. Oestlien said, adding that they wanted advertisers “to make rich creative ads that are really useful to the end user.”

Google’s tools are convenient for ad agencies because they make it easy to create a widget quickly, said Dimitry Ioffe, chief executive of Media Banners, a division of the Visionaire Group, a digital agency based in California. Mr. Ioffe ran a widget ad for Paramount Vantage’s movie “A Mighty Heart” this summer in Google’s new program.

Mr. Ioffe said that Google’s tools to help marketers make widgets more easily may also help them cut expenses. Instead of paying news sites to run videos from a movie’s premiere, for example, studios can make it easy for consumers to post the movie videos on their own sites or social network profiles, providing free advertising.

“Widgets are a dream for marketers,” Mr. Ioffe said. “They allow them to extend their brand off of their individual sites and allow their brands to live as long as consumers want them to live.”

Google Tests Mobile Ads in U.S. and Europe, JumpTap Jumps In

By Zachary Rodgers , September 6, 2006

Google is testing ads on its mobile search interfaces in the U.S., U.K. and Germany a spokesperson has confirmed. The deal is similar to a pilot the company began testing in Japan earlier this year.

Separately, white label mobile search player JumpTap has launched a mobile search index and auction-based ad platform to monetize search traffic for its carrier clients. Mobile operators use the service to provide on-deck search functions to their subscribers.

Pricing of Google's mobile ads product is similar to that of the company's keyword bidding platform for regular Internet search, according to an AdWords FAQ on the subject. Marketers fix their maximum cost-per-click (CPC). Smart pricing doesn't apply and conversion tracking isn't currently available. All mobile search ads are subject to human editorial review.

Among the providers of branded mobile search, Google has the largest audience with approximately 4.5 million users on average during each off the last three months, according to M:Metrics. Yahoo's mobile search offering trails slightly behind, at 3.8 million. MSN and AOL have far smaller mobile reach, 1.1 million and 700,000 users, respectively.

M:Metrics doesn't break out the share of search owned by white label search services like JumpTap. The company's VP of Marketing Eric McCabe claims search services on the carrier decks account for approximately a third of all search traffic. He said their share of the market is set to rise as carriers push the search interface more front and center on the handset interfaces.

JumpTap's new search index and ad platform, unveiled today, offer both paid and unpaid means for marketers to get their content and offers in front of wireless subscribers. Paid ad products include CPC text listings, banner units, landing page creation and interstitials. Free services for mobile site operators include optimization and inclusion services such as XML feeds.

The paid advertising portion of the platform is similar to an AdWords or Yahoo Search bidding interface. McCabe: "We have our own bidding interface. People can go in and bid for mobile specific keywords, and those will get incorporated as sponsored links at the top or bottom of [search results].

McCabe said the early advertisers on JumpTap's platform are likely to be mobile content providers, such as ringtones and wallpapers, both often sold directly through the handset interface. Other likely advertisers in the space are regional businesses, though as with other forms of local online advertising, raising their awareness of the mobile channel and the option to advertise there remains an obstacle.

Both Google and JumpTap sit on the Mobile Marketing Association's Mobile Search Committee.

Mobile Search Advertisers Up Spend

SEPTEMBER 12, 2007

Will the market mirror Google's growth curve?

US mobile search advertising revenues are projected to reach $1.4 billion in 2012, up from $33.2 million in 2007, according to The Kelsey Group.

The optimistic estimate represents a compound annual growth rate of 112%.

"Advertisers in the US are the most aggressive in terms of messaging to potential US consumers," said Matt Booth, senior vice president at Kelsey, in a statement. "Given the relatively high spend levels, we believe advertisers will continue to look into innovative solutions, including mobile, that demonstrate a clear ROI on ad spend."

Kelsey figured that ad-sponsored directory assistance would contribute to mobile search revenue. Mobile Internet ads on information sites such as Google Maps would contribute as well.

The estimates also included "multi-modal applications," which convert voice commands into data and information requests.

eMarketer's mobile search ad revenue estimate for 2011 is $713.7 million, up from the 2007 forecast of $13.5 million. The number focuses solely on money generated by ads.

"A $715 million mobile search market is not a foregone conclusion," said John du Pre Gauntt, eMarketer senior analyst, "but many of the behavioral factors are in place in the US market to push mobile search forward. For one, there is already a strong correlation between mobile Internet use and accessing mobile search services."

Mr. Gauntt said that the US mobile search market will suffer growing pains over the next two to three years as the tug of war between operators, portal players, media and mobile search start-ups continues for the title of mobile search leader.

Texting for College Students' Cash

SEPTEMBER 10, 2007 - Reaching mobile users with permission.

When it comes to money, the perception of the starving college student applies less and less.

According to findings in the "American Freshmen: Forty-Year Trends 1966–2006" report from the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA's Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, entering freshmen in 2005 "came from households with a parental median income of $74,000, 60% higher than the national average of $46,326."

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An Alloy Marketing + Media-commissioned study by Harris Interactive found that 2007 college students age 18 to 30 have $48 billion in mad money or disposable income.

On campus, much of that spending is going toward technology such as mobile phones. More than nine in 10 college students have mobile handsets, according to the Alloy-Harris study.

So college students have mobile phones and money. How can marketers use one to generate the other? After all, unsolicited messages sent to mobile phones are just portable spam.

Ad-supported mobile content may not be enough.

One-half (51%) of mobile users surveyed by Harris in October 2006 said they were not at all willing to watch advertising in exchange for free mobile applications. The remaining 49% were only slightly negative to neutral.

Marketers may reach college students by capitalizing on their penchant for texting.

A May 2007 Youth Trends study found that 78% of college students had sent a text message within the past week.

"Female college students are more likely to use text messaging, and that opens up an opportunity for marketers whose products are aimed at young women," said Debra Aho Williamson, senior analyst at eMarketer.

Embedding short codes on product packages can prompt texting, and the potential goes beyond Coke cans and snack wrappers. Short codes on physical media such as newspapers, magazines and billboards tie them to mobile handsets, along with the permission required to reach mobile users, at least with a specific offer.