Agency holding company Interpublic Group has finalized a multifaceted agreement with social-networking site Facebook.com, with IPG clients as a result receiving prime advertising space as well as consumer research from the site, reports AdWeek. As earlier reported, IPG will acquire less than .05 percent of Facebook as part of the deal.
The marketing programs included in the deal will consist of online advertising and promotions on Facebook, and the consumer research will result in part from pilot programs that involve sponsorships and content creation for IPG clients. CNET reports that IPG has committed $10 million in advertising to Facebook.com.
"Young and tech-savvy consumers are increasingly shunning traditional media vehicles and defining themselves and their community online," Interpublic CEO Michael Roth said in a statement.
"The piece that's really unique with IPG is that we both have strong strategic focus on consumer insight. The 19-to-24-year-old demo is really hard to reach, and the consumer insight is a focus on really trying to understand that demo much better," Melanie Deitch, director of marketing for Facebook, told CNET.
In June, Student Monitor, a student market researc firm, reported that 71 percent of college students consider Facebook.com an "in" thing, compared with 58 percent for MySpace. Facebook tied for second place with beer; iPods were first.