Christopher Saunders

Ad agency conglomerate Omnicom Group executives fired back Wednesday at questions raised in a Wall Street Journal story concerning the holding company’s accounting — including the handling of its recent reorganization of interactive shops — which had sparked a major sell-off earlier in the day. By the time that Omnicom Chief Executive John Wren and […]

In another sign of returning venture capital interest in the online ad space, rich media e-mail firm MindArrow Systems will receive up to several million dollars in badly needed financing, and also expects to benefit from the presence of an influential new board member. The Huntington Beach, Calif.-based firm, which ended last quarter with only […]

Online ad network and technology player ValueClick is taking the wraps off its rebranded Dynamo ad server, henceforth known as MOJO Publisher. The publisher-side ad server will be sold through ValueClick’s technology subsidiary, Mediaplex, which also markets the MOJO AdServer third-party ad server and MOJO Mail products. Westlake Village, Calif.-based ValueClick rebranded the product shortly […]

Pay-for-placement search provider Overture has another affiliate deal in place, this time with portal Lycos Europe, a unit of Madrid and Waltham, Mass.-based Terra Lycos . The exclusive, two-year agreement will see Pasadena, Calif.-based Overture providing its listings to Lycos’s U.K. site, starting next quarter. The company’s search results also will appear on Lycos Germany […]

Yesmail is joining the firms offering “e-mail append,” though the Chicago-based firm says its methodology makes the controversial practice more privacy-friendly and appealing to marketers. The service, which debuted this week in partnership with consumer data giant Acxiom, adds e-mail addresses to marketers’ offline consumer databases. CMGI-owned Yesmail offers access to about 42 million e-mail […]

Market researcher Taylor Nelson Sofres has acquired Evaliant Media Resources, which it plans to append to the online ad-tracking division of its CMR unit. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, but TNS said New York-based Evaliant assets totaled about $859,000 at the end of last year, while gross revenues topped $2.3 million. The firm’s […]

Site traffic measurement player WebSideStory is the latest recipient of a patent in the online marketing space, receiving protection for its HitBox technology. The San Diego, Calif.-based firm, which also offers a standalone software product, received U.S. Patent No. 6,393,479 for its HitBox ASP offering. The patent, “Internet Web Site Traffic Flow Analysis,” protects the […]

Interactive agency Avenue A is offering a new service to clients that aims to better measure and track online advertising effectiveness. The Seattle-based firm’s BrandOptics service, which it’s launching through a partnership with survey technology firm SuiteSmart, tracks the responses of Internet users exposed to a client’s online ads or e-mail, or who have visited […]

Apple Computer is upping the ante in its bid to boost market share with a new campaign that speaks directly to Microsoft Windows users. The “Real People” campaign from Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple debuts Monday with eight spots, each of which features an interview with a different PC-to-Macintosh convert. Designed by longtime Apple agency of record […]

Luxury automaker BMW of North America plans to continue its much-lauded online film effort with a series of new releases later this year. The initiative, launched last year by BMW with its agency Fallon Worldwide, saw the release of five short films on BMWfilms.com. The series, dubbed “The Hire” and starring Clive Owen in the […]

Domain name registrar VeriSign’s recent direct marketing campaign continues to land the firm in hot water, as a second competitor joins the legal fray with its own suit. In its lawsuit, Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Go Daddy Software, a discount domain name registrar, accuses VeriSign of consumer fraud, deceptive advertising and misappropriation of trade secrets. The firm […]

“Name your own price” travel site Priceline is on a tear, adding another marketing alliance to its roster just days after acquiring a rival. The Norwalk, Conn. firm will now provide a booking engine to OneTravel, a niche travel site specializing in budget vacations through specially negotiated, fixed-price rates. Importantly for Priceline, the agreement also […]