AdForce, Set-Top.com Make Interactive TV Ad Pact

In a deal that brings AdForce Inc.
into the world of interactive television, the CMGI-owned firm on Wednesday agreed to
manage and serve advertisements for Set-Top.com, a maker of set-top box
products and services.

The deal calls for AdForce to manage, target, and deliver banner ads to
Web-TV Plus set-top boxes. It’s a first-generation technology, and is
currently available to a limited number of viewers, but it’s one of the
first experiments with introduce advertising to interactive TV.

The idea is that television programmers and advertisers can use the ads to
promote programs that are currently playing, or upcoming programs. Users
who click on the banner ad will be transported to the channel being
advertised.

“With this alliance, AdForce will be able to explore a whole new form of
advertising,” said Chuck Berger, chief executive officer of AdForce.

“‘Click-For-TV’ will give AdForce the opportunity to extend its reach to
television programmers and advertisers and make it possible for them to
target the increasing number of viewers that are using the Internet via the
TV as a prime source of entertainment.”