MediaPost | Data and Targeting Insider

How IBM Commercializes Watson Post-'Jeopardy'

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:50:00 -0400

Remember Watson, the artificial intelligence software IBM created to compete on the "Jeopardy" game show? IBM on Tuesday released Watson Engagement Advisor, which will support consumer call centers.

Twitter Acquires Data-Focused Companies For Real-Time Analytics

Wed, 15 May 2013 10:05:33 -0400

Twitter's focus continues to turn toward real-time marketing and the data that backs the transitions. The company acquired Lucky Sort for its technology that supports text analysis, and data mining and visualization in real time. Noah Pepper, Lucky Sort CEO and founder, announced the move in a blog post and tweet. He explains that a few employees will join Twitter's revenue engineering department, moving to San Francisco to @jointheflock.

Data Mining 'Pee-Pee:' Selling Mastery In The Age Of Personal Analytics

Mon, 13 May 2013 12:23:18 -0400

A 'pee sensor' for your kid's diaper? When you are done chuckling, consider the richer and marvelous potential of companies developing data tools that give consumers greater mastery over their own lives.

The High Price of Bad Targeting And Data Complacency

Fri, 10 May 2013 00:35:00 -0400

Consumers are a lot less happy with customer service both online and offline than companies like to think. And as we all get savvier about what data can do, consumers will expect companies to use this information to make our lives easier.

'Always Above The Fold': Audio Joins The RTB Ranks

Mon, 06 May 2013 15:33:00 -0400

Audio RTB is here as one company slips biddable spots into the internet radio stream. Unlike display, audio ads are hard to ignore, and RTB offers spot buyers a level of targeting new to radio.

The Doggy Dog World Of Data, Coupons

Thu, 02 May 2013 01:16:29 -0400

I take my soft-coated wheaten terrier to a veterinarian that provides a percentage off one service per month with a coupon available to print from its Web site. The office requires a printed coupon, but I have asked them to create a digital alternative. For some reason I can't get them to think like the 414 manufacturers who distributed 14% more digital coupons on Web sites in Q1 2013, compared with the year-ago quarter, according to Marx, a Kantar Media solution.

Back To Basics: MobiGirl Media's Simple, Transparent Tween-Targeting

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:12:00 -0400

Take a break from phony transparency, eye-glazing algorithms and twisted math. Mobigirls Media is as cute and straightforward a startup ad network as the tween girl market it serves.

Facebook To Open Tech-Advanced Data Center

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:58:58 -0400

Microsoft and Google recently announced clean energy plans for their respective data centers -- and now Facebook will build what some call the "most technologically advanced" data center in Altoona, Iowa.

Is 'Do Not Track' And Opt-Out Already Impacting Audience Value And Pricing?

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:32:00 -0400

As more browsers put DNT flags and cookie blocks on by default, we may be seeing the the first signs of cookie-resistance affecting the data-driven ad system.

Study: Most Shared Ads In Entertainment Vertical

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 17:11:14 -0400

Ad campaigns produced by consumer product goods (CPG) companies attracted nearly as many online video shares as movie, TV and videogame trailers during Q1 2013, according to a recent report from video tech company Unruly.

Privacy: The Video Game

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:27:00 -0400

The Mumbai-based BMW Guggenheim Lab has gamified the topic of privacy by visually mapping the expectation of privacy people claim in 10 different activities compared in cities across the globe.

Microsoft Building Cloud Data Services For Small To Midsize Retailers

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 17:07:44 -0400

One important strategy few online retailers tap points to tying Web search with Web site query data and using cloud services to support targeting. A study from Microsoft Research, "Data Services for E-tailers Leveraging Web Search Engine Assets," analyzes the options and presents three cloud data services--entity synonym, query to entity, and entity tagging -- to support smaller etailers whose marketing execs don't believe their company can match the same rich user experiences as larger online retailers.

Internet Data Used To Further Biological Sciences

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 17:40:34 -0400

More and more often, scientists are taking data "off the shelf" and combining it with machine learning to derive insights in biology, Microsoft Research's David Heckerman explains in a video. "The cost of sequencing human DNA is dropping extremely quickly, much faster than Moore's Law," he said, explaining the cost went from several billion a little more than 10 years ago to sequence one human genome to about $1,000 today. "Soon it will cost less than taking blood."

Retail Surveillance Is About To Make Your Online Targeting Seem A Lot Less Creepy

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 10:18:21 -0400

For as long as I have been covering digital media -- and especially behavioral targeted advertising -- technology companies and ad networks have complained that they're being held to a higher standard of consumer privacy protection than the off-line world. After all, credit card companies, magazine companies, telemarketers, and direct mail have all been swapping our names, addresses, and demographics for decades. But despite industry protests, digital data tracking has always been seen as somehow more surreptitious and dangerous than offline data gathering. Well, the retail segment may actually be doing online advertisers and technology companies an unintentional favor. The amount of surveillance, user tracking, and data sharing that is starting to go on in physical retail locations may make consumers forget altogether the relatively tame uses of data by the online advertising ecosystem.

Uphill Trend In Mobile Devices Could Delay Ad Rendering

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 15:54:36 -0400

iPass released findings from its Q1 2013 Global Mobile Workforce Report analyzing the evolution of the bring your own device (BYOD) trend and the hurdles to Wi-Fi connectivity and download speeds. The research shows that while business users of mobile leverage a variety of devices, data limits affect productivity. And while the report doesn't mention this as a problem, slowing access or lack of connectivity could also affect the way ads serve-up across the internet and targeting techniques.

Facebook's Really, Really Bad Idea

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:18:51 -0400

Facebook is experimenting with an extraordinarily bad idea: using push notifications in mobile apps to get people to update their status more frequently. Facebook confirmed to Mashable that this was a limited test it was trying in specific regions. It almost goes without saying that this is incredibly stupid. Users almost certainly will get annoyed and quickly disable the app.

Chameleon Botnet Taking Millions From Brands

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:41:02 -0400

The Chameleon Botnet discovered in February cost advertisers $6.2 million monthly, targeting more than 202 Web sites, and accounting for about 9 billion of the 14 billion ad impressions served up monthly, according to U.K.-based Spider.io. Scary thought considering how much money advertisers waste.

Can Ad Targeting Work Without A Better Internet?

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 14:42:02 -0400

I noticed quite a few really smart people speaking at the latest South by Southwest interactive (SXSWi) conference expressed their discontent with the overall quality of the Internet. That's aside from the World Wide Web Inventor Tim Berners-Lee, who during a keynote said that "the reason the Internet sucks today is because we haven't fixed it yet. ... We messed up."

How Data Supports Customer Service To Improve ROI

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 10:35:03 -0400

Amazon is No. 1 in customer service, even above Nordstrom, according to Todd Morris, EVP brand development at Catalina. The reason? Personalization, he told South by Southwest attendees during a session titled "Death by Demographics: Killing Off your Ad Budget."

New FTC Chair Makes Privacy Priority But Favors Voluntary Road

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:54:30 -0400

In her first public appearance since becoming Chair of the FTC, Edith Ramirez made clear she was not going to be shy about using the Commission's authority to press digital companies on privacy.

How To Design A Data Lifecycle Management Framework

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 17:35:39 -0500

Utopia's execs are attempting to change the way companies think about data by creating an enterprise data lifecycle management (EDLM) framework to manage data throughout its lifecycle, from creation and capture through management, maintenance, archiving and disposal.

Report: Our Privacy Regimens Are Outdated

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 14:00:04 -0500

In a thoughtful study, the World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting Group argue that existing data privacy interactions with consumers are obsolete and need to reflect the new realities of big data use cases and sharing.

Travel: Behavior, Location Tells Me Where You're Going

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 16:28:00 -0500

As the U.S. heads into the travel season and marketers start thinking about targeting those on the go, eXelate releases data analyzing travel destinations. Where travelers go helps marketers to understand consumers' personalities through activities.

Mail Online: Dissecting The Mobile Migration

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 14:06:04 -0500

Device access to media offers both publishers and marketers something much more promising than just "content everywhere." We now get sequential access to users throughout the day.

Understanding Human Nature Through Data Makes Marketers Better Brand Advocates

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 09:40:03 -0500

Data will make behavior, rather than intent or interest, more important to marketing and advertising. I'm not referring to behavioral targeting or remarketing, but to how consumers interact and why they share things.

You Attract More Barflies With Fun Than With Savings

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 10:40:03 -0500

Buzztime, the network with more than 15,000 video gaming screens in bars and restaurants, finds that targeting people with the promise of more fun beats a simple discount offer any day.

Obama's State Of The Union: The Data Behind The Comments

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 14:04:00 -0500

The White House introduced social tools for the American people to provide feedback on the State of the Union address. Think of the data sitting behind the Twitter tweets and comments on Facebook and Google+.

Google's Big Move: Targeting Contexts, Not Screens

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:46:03 -0500

By blurring the lines among desktop, tablet and mobile screens, Google is forcing a good but perhaps early conversation about targeting and valuing contexts.

How Data In The Information Age Compares With Oil In The Industrial Revolution

Wed, 06 Feb 2013 16:25:36 -0500

Follow the data. Data highlights behavioral patterns. That's the mantra for 2013. Marketing have found most events are predictable using statistical analysis, even when it comes down to using word choice in comments and recommendations. Data will become the most critical driver of the information age, similar to oil in the industrial age, but many marketers are ill prepared to make decisions in real time.

Separating Mobile From Portable Targets

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 12:25:00 -0500

In order to grow up, mobile advertising needs to distinguish smartphone from tablets. Moods, modes and the necessary messaging on each platform are quite different. It is not all "mobile."