LookingConfident's  Instablog

In my post over on ShareCafe (in OZ), in Paul Saffo's "The creator economy beckons"... the writer tells it all, I believe..

[Added 10 Dec. 2010 Note: ShareCafe sadly have my IP address 'blocked' to effectively stop my accessing some (over) 8000 posts I'd made on this site. -- Besides the "walled garden" mentality - - - that STILL remains with such a 'behind the times' site owner attitude, that they STILL hold on to!!]

He says (& I fully endorse what he is says), that the global recession (in reality) — is now ushering in a new economy.

The writer Paul Saffo, who is a technology forecaster based in Silicon Valley points out, (that in his opinion) ... 

<The consumer economy that was born in the 1950s is lurching to an end, and a new “creator economy” is emerging. This shift represents the third economic turning in just over a century.> 

[Added 12th Aug, 2011 Paul Saffo's story  McKinsey: What Matters: Get ready for a new economic era]

I'm sure that it would do no harm for both "old" or, any "new" investors to read this full thread and get to understand what the writer is on about. In doing so, you may then get to see a very rosy future in some investments subsequently made (and, as a result) of your doing so, is my opinion.

http://www.sharecafe.com.au/board_postview.asp?a=PVS&postID=486999&boardID=3662&sym=GENR

I believe, that there is not a business (product or, service) that cannot benefit from integrated marketing solutions and from across multiple platforms, on the web.. Tell me of just one and I'll not only tell you, but I will confidently show you, different....  :)

According to their 'profile' on Yahoo Finance National CineMedia, Inc. [NCMI] operates a digital in-theatre network in North America....

< .....The company, through its proprietary digital content network and digital broadcast network, distributes advertising, business meetings, and digital programming event services.............  It develops, produces, sells, and distributes a branded, pre-feature entertainment and advertising program, "FirstLook"; an advertising program for the lobby entertainment network; and various marketing and promotional products in theatre lobbies, etc >   

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=NCMI

From within their CC, comes the following .....

< Turning briefly to some of our future growth initiatives, our web initiative is beginning to gain traction with the Q2 launch of our new consumer website, ncm.com and related widgets. And we began to market and sell our online ad network. While the ncm.com traffic is still somewhat modest, our online ad network that currently represents 22 publishers in addition to mcm.com has nearly 30 million monthly unique visitors. This new online initiative provides our sales force with a unique, integrated bundle that can be sold separately or with our in-theater products.

While we have begun to close deals with interactive online agencies, we are not expecting our online initiative to be a meaningful growth driver in the near term. However, as media buying silos continue to collapse and clients increasingly look for integrated marketing solutions across multiple platforms, we believe that ncm.com and our ad network will be an important part of our future growth.>

http://seekingalpha.com/article/154521-national-cinemedia-inc-q2-2009-earnings-call-transcript?page=2

And under that old adage........
 
..............that, "a rising tide lifts all boats" or, participants, here's what I feel is an immediate gain that LOOK shareholders will enjoy or, is in store for them in the next 6 months or, sooner ..... 

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=NCMI&t=1y&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=look

But just an opinion, of course!

Disclosure: Holding LOOK shares "long".

LC
 

##..It's the critical point of the [MSN - Yahoo]  'deal' apart from search, of course.

With YeildBuild working on behalf of publishers and that global scale. (Providing that very same optimal pricing campaign management for publishers, as Looksmart's SmartRotation will be doing so, for advertisers.) It becomes a so obvious progression for large publisher networks [plus Advertisers and other Ad Networks] to join in, the further this goes.##

It's all about "Optimal pricing" and it's explained here in an article coming from MediaPost.com, with the full story being linked below.

<...Understanding the advertiser's conversion metric and using Optimal Pricing, LookSmart drove click prices to between 10 cents and 30 cents. The advertiser's daily spend increased to $1,660, but more than doubled the conversion rate to 175, which totaled a lower CPA of $9.50, according to Schoen.

More clicks at a lower average rate and paying less per conversion is the key to Optimal Pricing, Schoen says. It's a combination of technology and service in the platform that allows LookSmart to understand how to value queries and extract the value from each click.>  

< LookSmart works with networks such as Kontera, which works with TMZ.com, among others.>

Full Story: LookSmart Dances Advertisers Toward Optimal Pricing

TMZ.com is a joint venture of Telepictures Productions and AOL. - http://www.tmz.com/about/

Overnight Looksmart's share-price was driven down once again by MM's in their effort to pick-up "cheap" shares. In a total volume of 23,280 (as shown as being traded, as per YahooFinance), the Nasdaq Exchange recorded just 4180 of them. And Yahoo Finance's LOOK board continues to remove (yes, delete) posts of any positive nature ...

How sad is that in today's 'climate', I ask?

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/nlstrades.aspx?symbol=LOOK&selected=LOOK

LOOK; 3:59pm ET: $1.26  -0.07 (-5.26%)

Any comment 'thoughts' expressed are only just that ...Thoughts expressed and may well simply all be a case of.. "barking up the wrong tree", ok?  

:)

Disclosure: Happy to be 'long' in LOOK shares.

LC

(Part 2 of a 'two part' instablog)

Continued from part (1)
 
Daniel Hung (a shareholder in Google, Microsoft and Yahoo), has further asks himself and readers ...

DH - Does Microsoft intend to continue to run MSN? As far as I’ve read, Yahoo’s ad deal does not cover Microsoft’s content properties. How will Microsoft monetize MSN now that its clear that its own Ad Center will not have reach into a much better trafficked search destination?

[ MSN will use it's 'chosen' YieldBuild on it's own "content" properties and I supect that Yahoo will do so, likewise. Newspaper sites will almost certainly fall into line, in time. With Bing search and the Yahoo (with a YieldBuild), alternative to Google & adsense. It's where many advertisers (agencies and ad networks) will want to be, and understandably so.

It's the critical point of the 'deal', apart from search, of course. With YeildBuild working on behalf of publishers and that global scale. (And providing that very same optimal pricing campaign management for publishers, as Looksmart's SmartRotation will be doing so, for advertisers.) It becomes a so obvious progression for large publisher networks to join in, the further this goes........

Both YieldBuild and SmartRotation allow for Google's adsense to be run, as a part of the comparitive pricing functionality of both offerings, is my understanding. So, should adsense be an automatic better return for a publisher spot being sold, YeildBuild will select that higher (than any other 'bid') priced Ad, accordingly.

But how long can it (adsense) really last when continually up against Looksmart's SmartRotation, that is offering to pay out to publishers (I believe), up to "92% in the dollar" in all such "click" transactions? The reason why Google bought DoubleClick was to be a part of this much more equitable (for both parties), evolution or, progression. [Revolution?]

Advertisers will always enjoy an 'averaged'  (consistantly) lower priced cost (and be graciously accepting the lowest publisher ask price on offer, ATT) and publishers will enjoy the higher percentage attached to,  whatever that click's worth, in return.

Looksmart (with it's "8% in the dollar" inter-connecting FEE), will enjoy the scale of it all and has obviously done so during the beta period, with it doing, (CC - Ted West) "During the second quarter, the platform processed well over 1billion search queries and delivered over 2.2 million paid clicks per day".

YieldBuild  re: MSN - YieldBuild and Looksmart....... IMHO, is built around MSN's Atlas and a Co they bought, in Rapt. re: MSN - YieldBuild and Looksmart....... 

And it appears that it was 'developed' under the same roof as Looksmart's SmartRotation. - re: MSN - YieldBuild and Looksmart....... it seems most likely too, that with with Looksmart's SmartRotation (and YieldBuild?) you can run Google's Adsense, at the same time. re: MSN - YieldBuild and Looksmart.......

From witin this post  re: Google saw it coming or, were told..... YieldBuild (I'm assuming - as a part of a name called publisher center) is described as such, that:  Microsoft's ad tool creates a unique national panel that it uses to help advertisers find the audiences they're looking for. (And a variety on offer?)

Now much has been written about MSN's use of YieldBuild re: MSN - YieldBuild - Looksmart (1) (they own it, is my honest opinion) and in this post here I brush on a reported kind of  "cosy-ness" (at the time) between big Ad Agencies and Microsoft - re: MSN -YieldBuild and Looksmart..(a)  - Surely those Agencies (the likes of a, Publicis) were "beta" testing with Looksmart's SmartRotation?
 
...........And some other publisher based Networks that I feel will all get to use YeildBuild (a 'privated labeled version, no doubt).- re: AdMeld - YieldBuild & SmartRotations . In the case of Turn, (re: The bottom line is Folks .....)  it may well be a Looksmart 'private labeled' publisher arrangement, the kind that ask.com (ASL) themselves would take on. To see them remain independent (on their own publisher data 'angle'), of MSN, Yahoo, for starters.....

The CC and Ted West......."We also expect to continue to exchange valuable keyword advertising fees under a separate and mutual distribution agreement between ASL and LookSmart in the future". 

ALL, just an opinion, of course.....

Disclosure: Happy to be a LOOK shareholder
 
LC