Turner Forms Online Ad Network

Turner is pasting together its vast collection of Web properties to form a sizable, brand-friendly ad network, just as the company officially swears off selling its remnant inventory via third-party ad networks. The cable-centric company said it plans to begin packaging both display and video ad inventory for advertisers from 19 different Web sites. That encompasses
owned-and-operated properties like CNN.com and CartoonNetwork.com as well as partner sites such as NBA.com and PGA.com as part of an overall digital sales restructuring (previously news and entertainment properties were sold by different groups). In total, the new network, which also includes TNT.com, TBS.com, PGATour.com, AdultSwim.com and GameTap.com,will be able to deliver an audience of 48 million monthly unique users (per Nielsen Online), putting it in range of some of the Web’s larger media conglomerates. But unlike some of the major ad networks, Turner says it’s now positioned to offer high reach while promising sometimes-leery brand advertisers the benefits of well-lit, quality editorial environments. That’s not always guaranteed when brands run across thousands of long-tail sites. “I don’t’ know how many companies can do what we’re attempting to do,” said David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting Sales, Inc. and president of Turner Sports. “We can deliver high reach with 19 different brands, not hundreds of sites. And these are strong
brands too.”
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/digital-downloads/broadband/e3i4a78a69f13b8af058d11b8fa889da6f3