LookingConfident's  Instablog

Now that, WOULD be the kind of or, surely enough "news" to really set Looksmart's share-price value, on fire.

......"Everyone is waiting to see what Facebook does," said Brian O'Kelley [founder & CEO of AppNexus], noting that Mark Zuckerberg's company has done a good job within its "closed" platform (externally served ads aren't really allowed on Facebook) & could soon be looking for ways to open it up.

"Europe's Sizzling Display Ad Market Provides Opportunity For Facebook"

tinyurl.com/3rg2yzr

Open it up?

Already, Facebook is seen to be passing Yahoo in display ads.

Well ...

For starters ...How about Performance and CPAs, for Facebook?

With Looksmart providing that "independent" entry (and a 'fire-wall'-like data protection), into a one big marketplace, for all players involved?

Looksmart (maintaining it's 'staying under the radar' policy), advised of a further loss in revenues Y/Y - Q/Q of some $6.6M/$2M, that was not met with any delight (at all), resulting in a 12.35% loss, on the day. But the Co also told it will be "breaking even", for the Q1 2011 period.

LookSmart Reports Preliminary Second Quarter 2011 Results

Today (once again) the Co casually mentions that "Yahoo! Partners", are our largest customer group. But there's never been an (individual) announcement, in that regard. And that's not worth some 'beating of the drum' about?

And ("Yahoo! Partners"), Looksmart's largest customer group?

Yet, Google itself (according to ClickStream @ Alexa), is shown here as providing 23.21%/23.18% of traffic, in and out of AdCenter.

www.alexa.com/siteinfo/looksmart.com#

Looksmart (I strongly believe) have been assigned the 'exclusive' use of performance marketing (yes, with 'blind retargeting' of users), and across what will be one huge OPEN marketplace for the retargeting of users, within.

The Co have almost declared this as being so, too!

A reminder (again) that Looksmart's CEO Jean-Yves (and, from within the CC following the Q1 2011 Report), had told the market:

"We are now proposing the CPA or cost per action and CPV (or, cost per view), model to our impression customers, who are [re?-] targeting new visitors to their sites.

We are able to select the right traffic in real time and deliver it at a guaranteed cost per visit recorded on their site rather than a traditional CPC basis."

"We are exclusively targeting direct advertisers and their agencies operating outside of the [Tier One?] search engines."

Yes, EXCLUSIVELY is what Looksmart's CEO advises, above. With my own interpretation of that being or, meaning performance marketing or, the "re-targeting" (CPAs, CPVs) of users, across the (now quickly growing), Looksmart marketplace.

Where does Facebook fit in?

I've made mention (in a few) instaposts of (obviously), some "testing" (re; retargeting users), that has already gone on, by Facebook.

seekingalpha.com/user/36191/instablog/se...

Readers should make no mistake about platform compatibilities among the big players in the display marketplace. (All, being a "clone" of the Microsoft [strongly] supported AppNexus, that I have so often opined here, in that I feel - Looksmart's own AdCenter marketplace was or, has been built in conjunction with.)

And a Facebook (private labeled) replica or, 'same use' of, like-wise?

Hellooooo world!! - tinyurl.com/3syt9z9

Yes ....

"Facebook currently serves banner advertising provided by the Microsoft adCenter network and also utilizes the Looksmart AdCenter enterprise technology for serving their own ads."

seekingalpha.com/instablog/36191-looking...

As always, all just an opinion.

LOOK: 4:00PM EDT: $1.49 0.21 (-12.35%)

Note: Today's share-price closing price gives Looksmart a Market Cap of just $25.74M ........Yet, at the end of Q1 2011 [LookSmart Reports First Quarter 2011 Results], The Company (as we are told), had ended the quarter with $25.5 million in cash.

And from the above (Blog.Forbes.com) article:

Enders Analysis notes......"Spend on social networks is growing fast almost everywhere, but remains lower in markets with strong local publisher networks and those - - in which Facebook's commercial development is nascent."

The analysts expect social media's share of online advertising ....."to run ahead of its share of consumption, due to the high level of reach and engagement and targeting capabilities" over the next two to three years.

LC

ps; Facebook's new ranking as top digital display advertiser over Google and Yahoo!! - http://ow.ly/5molz

pps; ADOTAS - According to IDC, Google may have stolen the U.S. display crown from Yahoo! during the first quarter of 2011, but eMarketer doesn't believe the company will keep it very .....

www.adotas.com/2011/06/facebook-to-yank-.../

ppps;

"Interoperability... the sweet spot"

pppps; About the Targeting of Individual Users and or, Audiences?

Display Advertising's Sea Change: It's About Audiences, Not Publications

Disclosure: Long LOOK and happy to be so...
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