B-to-B Adspend Up in 2004, Especially December

Business-to-business ad spending grew almost four percent in 2004 compared to 2003, according to figures from research firms Business Information Network and TNS Media Intelligence appearing in BtoB Online. Print ad pages saw a rise of 1.4 percent, with a... continue reading »

Digital Impact Declines infoUSA's Takeover Bid

Digital Impact rejected infoUSA's $2 per share bid for all its stock, a $81 million buyout offer, according to BtoB Online. The bid, a large premium over Digital Impact's current stock price, wasn't enough cash for the firm's board of... continue reading »

Yahoo to Bow Music Service

Music sites and web media watchers are atwitter about Yahoo's impending launch of what it hopes to be rival to Apple's iTunes music download service. A CNET report indicates the launch has been delayed to the end of March. Yahoo... continue reading »

A9 Exec Interviewed

An interview with A9's Barnaby Dorman, Amazon.com's lead developer for its local search efforts, revealed a bit more about the venture's intent and expectations. Zachary Rogers' interview shows that Amazon's ambitions remain limited to garnering revenue off of the Google... continue reading »

Kids Group Targets Buzz Marketing, Trade Group

ClickZ reports that a foundation geared to protecting kids from sex, violence and unfettered capitalism launched a trade media campaign attacking the new draft code of ethics put forward by the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA). The National Institute... continue reading »

Bloggers Have Few Job Protections

CNET put together a brief guide to blogging for employees, concentrating on the risks that bloggers can be fired for stating their opinions online. The crux: five states offer protections for employees for actions they conduct in their own free... continue reading »

Net Retail Sales Up 41 Percent for Week, Travel Sales Down

Internet retail sales shot up 41 percent for the week ending February 13 compared to the same week last year, according to comScore figures reported by Internet Retailer. Sales reached $1.79 billion when sales for both online and offline retail... continue reading »

Past Fraud Alleged at InfoSpace

PaidContent points to a strongly-worded investigative story on the bubble days of InfoSpace done by the Seattle Times. The Times alleges that former chairmain Naveen Jain and other senior executives deliberately deceived investors and plotted to thwart securities law restrictions... continue reading »

Eyeblaster Out with New 'VideoStrip'

Eyeblaster announced a new rich media format variant called a VideoStrip that runs within a normal-sized Flash ad, showing an occluded video screen. Upon rollover, the ad expands to a much larger video presentation. Eyeblaster also said it launched a... continue reading »

Overture Head: Microsoft Unlikely to Renew Yahoo Deal

AdWeek got confirmation of previous reports that Yahoo does not expect to renew its search advertising deal with Microsoft when the current contract's term ends in the middle of 2006. Yahoo's head of Overture Services said that Microsoft will likely... continue reading »

Burnett Sues for Allegedly Inflated Placement Deals

Adrants points to a MediaWeek story indicating the wild west of product placement may be even a bit more wild than previously supposed. Reality series creator Mark Burnett sued Madison Road, the firm credited with bringing some of the world's... continue reading »

FTC Tentatively Defines Spyware, Puts Firms on Notice for Deception, Omission

After convening its Spyware Workshop, the Federal Trade Commission staff put together a summary report [in PDF format] indicating their own perceptions of spyware, adware and what sorts of behavior may warrant regulation and enforcement. The 62-page document discusses at... continue reading »