Yahoo announced that it has purchased the 80 percent interest in ad exchange firm Right Media that it did not already own. Though the move could be seen as a response to rival Google’s recent acquisition of DoubleClick, it isn’t likely because the expansion has been in the works for the past year, said Forrester Research Vice President and Principal Analyst Charlene Li.
Right Media runs an exchange in which advertisers and publishers buy and sell online ad placements in real time through an auction system.
Yahoo is banking on grabbing the lead over Google in the niche ad market, where sellers gain greater access to a larger pool of advertisers.
Unlike an ad network, an ad exchange is a marketplace where publishers and advertisers can execute advertising transactions. Ad networks aggregate inventory from publishers and resell it to advertisers.
“The acquisition of Right Media will further Yahoo’s goal to create the industry’s most open, accessible and vibrant advertising marketplace,” said Yahoo chairman and chief executive Terry Semel.

Posted: 05|1|07 at 1:12 pm. Filed under: UK News.