Ready to (Pre-)Roll With Internet Ads

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Excerpt from our One-Page WSJ Summary:

ADVERTISING: Web-Video Spots Present Dilemma For Advertisers

Summary: Many internet media sites are faced with the decision whether or not to pre-roll, and if so how much. A pre-roll is the short advertising spot which is immune to fast-forwarding, unlike regular TV ads for those with DVRs. Currently, YouTube and Google (GOOG) eschew pre-roll advertising, while pre-rolls abound on Yahoo (YHOO), AOL (TWX), Microsoft's (MSFT) MSN, and MTV's Overdrive. Although pre-rolls mean huge revenues for advertisers, media outlets could lose internet viewers who may simply go elsewhere rather than sit through video ads. Companies which use pre-roll advertising are finding ways to make them more appealing to viewers: Time Warner's AOL does not use pre-rolls that are longer than 15 seconds, and usually allots one per program; CBS balances pre-rolls with mid-roll ads in the middle of a program; and General Electric's (GE) NBC Universal is trying out different lengths for pre-rolls.
Related links: Full WSJ article • aQuantive Comments On Graphical Ads, Rich Media and User-Generated Video • Cisco to Offer YouTube-like Service for Businesses • Downloadable Video: Will Anyone Actually Buy It? • NBC's Streamed Online Video Lands Ad Partners • Microsoft and Time Warner Ahead of Google in Web Video Ads • Forbes: Web Video Takes Off, Ads Trail • MarketingVOX: Study: Pre-Rolls Top Transitional Ads in Brand Awareness, but Not Buy Intent
Potentially impacted stocks and ETFs: aQuantive Inc. (AQNT)

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