4 ms·

AOL has adtech advertisers setup with some large customer base probably 3rd or 4th to Google/Facebook. It also owns publishers like HuffPost, TechCrunch etc.

perardi 5y ago
Well when your large customer base leads you to a $5 billion writedown and a public confession that Google and Facebook are eating your lunch… https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/12/12/verizon-takes-massive-billion-write-down-its-media-business/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/12/12/verizon... …color me skeptical that there’s a bright future there.
- itsbits 5y ago
  They had good customer base initially. AOL has done so many acquisitions for like Adaptv(video advertising platform), Millenial Media(mobile advertising) etc which were pretty successful. Later ofcourse Yahoo. Failure started coz they platform integration plan didn't work as expected. Lot of talent from the acquisitions left. They still use lot of old tech setup for advertising, web platforms. In summary, they failed in making a single platform from acquisitions they had.
- skinnymuch 5y ago
  Writing off $5B means a ton of money for Verizon. Right there we can see they already didn’t actually lose half of their investment spend. Most people’s lunch is being eaten by the big two. Snap had to go with a different ads biz model to not directly compete with the big two. It doesn’t stop Verizon Media, now Yahoo, from being the 5th or 6th biggest ad[tech] and online ads business. I’m hedging 6th in case there’s some one else between Microsoft and Amazon.
skinnymuch 5y ago
I think Verizon Media is 5th after the big two, Amazon, Microsoft. Unless LinkedIn is separate from Microsoft.
- Macha 5y ago
  Amazon is smaller than Verizon Media in this space. Microsoft and Verizon Media are not independent - Microsoft handles Verizon's search ads, Verizon handles ads on other Microsoft properties: https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en-us/solutions/ad-products/display-advertising-for-search-marketers https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en-us/solutions/ad-products/... That said, single market players like TheTradeDesk or Xandr are larger in their own markets than verizon media, but probably not compared to the combined publisher and advertiser business: https://www.atlantic.net/vps-hosting/top-10-dsp-providers/ https://www.atlantic.net/vps-hosting/top-10-dsp-providers/
  - skinnymuch 5y ago
    Ah interesting. Yeah, I’m not sure how a full proper ranking or comparison for digital ad market would be done. There’s lot of ad networks including the DSP list. Ad spend perhaps? Most of the major sites or apps that are only for their own property don’t include outside ads. I’m thinking LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snap, Twitter, Reddit, Yelp. I’m not certain on all of this though. Chumbox ads (Taboola, etc) have proliferated to a whole range of sites including top ones by now too. But then IAC, Verizon Media’s biggest properties, would be a mix of different things.
pridkett 5y ago
HuffPost was sold to Business Insider in 2020. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/buzzfeed-to-acquire-huffpost_n_5fb6b4c9c5b6f00bd84e74b3 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/buzzfeed-to-acquire-huffpost_...
- itsbits 5y ago
  Aah..my bad..I missed that..but that was vision(advertising + publishing) of AOL CEO Tim Armstrong..he was almost successful until Verizon acquisition and later Yahoo merger.

perardi 5y ago

Well when your large customer base leads you to a $5 billion writedown and a public confession that Google and Facebook are eating your lunch… https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/12/12/verizon-takes-massive-billion-write-down-its-media-business/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/12/12/verizon... …color me skeptical that there’s a bright future there.

itsbits 5y ago
They had good customer base initially. AOL has done so many acquisitions for like Adaptv(video advertising platform), Millenial Media(mobile advertising) etc which were pretty successful. Later ofcourse Yahoo. Failure started coz they platform integration plan didn't work as expected. Lot of talent from the acquisitions left. They still use lot of old tech setup for advertising, web platforms. In summary, they failed in making a single platform from acquisitions they had.
skinnymuch 5y ago
Writing off $5B means a ton of money for Verizon. Right there we can see they already didn’t actually lose half of their investment spend. Most people’s lunch is being eaten by the big two. Snap had to go with a different ads biz model to not directly compete with the big two. It doesn’t stop Verizon Media, now Yahoo, from being the 5th or 6th biggest ad[tech] and online ads business. I’m hedging 6th in case there’s some one else between Microsoft and Amazon.

skinnymuch 5y ago

I think Verizon Media is 5th after the big two, Amazon, Microsoft. Unless LinkedIn is separate from Microsoft.

Macha 5y ago
Amazon is smaller than Verizon Media in this space. Microsoft and Verizon Media are not independent - Microsoft handles Verizon's search ads, Verizon handles ads on other Microsoft properties: https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en-us/solutions/ad-products/display-advertising-for-search-marketers https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en-us/solutions/ad-products/... That said, single market players like TheTradeDesk or Xandr are larger in their own markets than verizon media, but probably not compared to the combined publisher and advertiser business: https://www.atlantic.net/vps-hosting/top-10-dsp-providers/ https://www.atlantic.net/vps-hosting/top-10-dsp-providers/
- skinnymuch 5y ago
  Ah interesting. Yeah, I’m not sure how a full proper ranking or comparison for digital ad market would be done. There’s lot of ad networks including the DSP list. Ad spend perhaps? Most of the major sites or apps that are only for their own property don’t include outside ads. I’m thinking LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snap, Twitter, Reddit, Yelp. I’m not certain on all of this though. Chumbox ads (Taboola, etc) have proliferated to a whole range of sites including top ones by now too. But then IAC, Verizon Media’s biggest properties, would be a mix of different things.

pridkett 5y ago

HuffPost was sold to Business Insider in 2020. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/buzzfeed-to-acquire-huffpost_n_5fb6b4c9c5b6f00bd84e74b3 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/buzzfeed-to-acquire-huffpost_...

itsbits 5y ago
Aah..my bad..I missed that..but that was vision(advertising + publishing) of AOL CEO Tim Armstrong..he was almost successful until Verizon acquisition and later Yahoo merger.