followthemedia.com - a knowledge base for media professionals
Spots & Space

Internet Advertising Is A Scary Place

By nearly every measure internet advertising is the fastest growing ad sector, taking money from all but television. The reasons are simple. More consumers attractive to advertisers are using the Web, certainly. More importantly, internet advertising is “cost effective,” meaning cheap.

scary faceSearch advertising is the biggest segment of internet advertising. This is good news for Google and every other search engine portal selling ads. And they all sell ads. Google, then, is the biggest seller of search advertising in the world.

Google’s AdWords system sells keywords to advertisers who want their name and claim higher in search results in hopes of attracting consumers’ attention. It must work because companies try every trick in the book to get those keywords right. But, we’re all protecting intellectual property now and brand names are even more important.

Last year in a landmark decision at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) luxury goods seller Louis Vuitton  (LVHM) lost its case against Google over the sale of a brand name as a keyword to a third party that didn’t actually own the intellectual property rights to that brand name. In effect, a search engine company can sell the keywords. If the intellectual property rights owner wants to exert its rights to that name in court it must sue the buyer of the keyword.

As so they did. Floral network Interflora sued UK retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) when its brand name was bought as a keyword by M&S. The result could have been consumer confusion and, then, lost business. Last week (March 24) ECJ Advocate General Niilo Jääskinen gave his non-binding opinion that, yes, M&S probably shouldn’t be able to buy the Interflora brand name as a keyword. The full court is expected to concur later this year. (See Interflora solicitor Marks & Clerk statement here)

The importance of Jääskinen’s opinion is not limited to a brand name dispute. Most national jurisdictions have notoriously vague laws related to anything internet. The Web has become  “wild west” of advertising where anything goes. Mounting case law, however, is changing that.

One would think buyers and sellers of advertising would want an end to confusion. Self-regulation agreements are a step but, lacking enforcement, the courts become the last resort. Even the “wild west” came to terms with order.

So disruptive that investors are salivating at a possible IPO is world-wide online coupon marketer Groupon. It’s also become a lawsuit magnet now that suing Google is no longer cool. Groupon spends millions on AdWords from Google, so much Google offered US$2 billion for it.

Groupon will find itself in a US District Court after a tour company complained (March 22) about false advertising and more. Groupon, alleges the tour operator, bids up the price of certain keywords even when it doesn’t offer coupons for the particular service.  There is, of course, a body of case law related to bait and switch advertising.

Order and the advertising world aren’t keywords fitting together very well. The ad people – and we love them – thrive on being disruptive. We just don’t necessarily want them as neighbors.

Back in traditional media, ad rules remain – country to country – notoriously confusing. Understanding alcohol advertising and sponsorship is particularly challenging. To that end, the European association of radio and television sales houses – egta – has gone live (March 24) with a dedicated website dedicated to everything you want to know about alcohol advertising. (See egta release with details here) A little less confusion is a good thing…usually.


See also in ftm Knowledge...

The Happy Advertising People

The advertising people are spending again. But things are different now and media people are feeling it. New media attracts attention and advertisers want to be where the action is. This ftm Knowledge file looks at the paradox of media and advertising. 120 pages PDF (September 2011)

Order here

Intellectual Property Rights - Yours, Mine and Ours

Every content creator and user has a vested interest in intellectual property rights, the rules meant to set a course for fair distribution of art, music, video and the written word. Agreement on those rules is not absolute. This ftm Knowledge file explores what's yours, mine and ours. 42 pages PDF (March 2011)

Order here

Google Is...

Google's leaders say their goal is to change the world. And they have. Far more than a search engine, Google has impact over every media sector and beyond, from consumer behavior to broadcasting and advertising to newspapers. That impact is detailed in this ftm Knowledge file. 63 pages PDF (February 2010)

Order here

Become an ftm Individual or Corporate Member and receive Knowledge files at no charge. JOIN HERE!

ftm Knowledge files are available to non-Members at €49 each. The charge to Individual Site Members is €15 each.


related ftm articles:

Junk Food Fight Moves To New Media
The ad people aren’t stupid. When the job is selling Skittles, they will mass that awesome creativity and sell Skittles. Consumer groups want laws.

The Web’s Attraction To Readers Is Not Matched By The Advertising Bucks From The Big Guys, Nor The Public’s Trust, And Now There’s A Dip In Internet Growth
The news for the web hasn’t been so great lately -- a new Yankelovich study says that ads on traditional media platforms make a more positive impression than digital, which may be why the Procter & Gambles of this world still put the vast bulk of their spend into traditional platforms, and that readers say they trust traditional media more than they do the Internet, and to top it off Q1 saw the Web’s first growth blip.

TV and Radio Web Sites Giving Newspaper Web Sites A Run For The Local Advertising Spend
More than a year ago ftm warned newspaper publishers that local television and radio were getting their Web act together and were nipping at newspaper web site revenues, and a new report out this week confirms just that. If newspapers want to get back the web revenue growth they desperately need then they need to change how they do things, not just editorially but on the advertising front, too.


advertisement

ftm resources

no resources posted as of March 24, 2012->


ftm Knowledge

Media in Spain - Diverse and Challenged – new

Media in Spain is steeped in tradition. yet challenged by diversity. Publishers hold great influence, broadcasters competing. New media has been slow to rise and business models for all are under stress. Rich in language and culture, Spain's media is reaching into the future and finding more than expected. 123 pages, PDF. January 2018

Order here

The Campaign Is On - Elections and Media

Elections campaigns are big media events. Candidates and issues are presented, analyzed and criticized in broadcast and print. Media is now more of a participant in elections than ever. This ftm Knowledge file reports on news coverage, advertising, endorsements and their effect on democracy at work. 84 pages. PDF (September 2017)

Order here

Fake News, Hate Speech and Propaganda

The institutional threat of fake news, hate speech and propaganda is testing the mettle of those who toil in news media. Those three related evils are not new, by any means, but taken together have put the truth and those reporting it on the back foot. Words matter. This ftm Knowledge file explores that light. 48 pages, PDF (March 2017)

Order here

More ftm Knowledge files here

Become an ftm Individual or Corporate Member to order Knowledge Files at no charge. JOIN HERE!

copyright ©2004-2012 ftm partners, unless otherwise noted Contact UsSponsor ftm