REDMOND, Wash., and NEW YORK — Jan. 29, 2008 — The Wall Street Journal Digital Network today announced an agreement in which Microsoft Corp. becomes the exclusive third-party provider of contextual and paid search advertising for its network of sites, including The Wall Street Journal Online, Barrons.com, MarketWatch.com, AllThingsD.com and others.
“Relevant and targeted digital advertising is important to our business and to the quality of the experience that we deliver to our users,” said Gordon McLeod, president of The Wall Street Journal Digital Network. “Microsoft’s state-of-the-art advertising platform will enable us to dramatically improve our revenues from this key sector, and we look forward to working together.”
“This deal is a significant win for Microsoft for two key reasons. First, it makes the extended Microsoft advertising network the premier destination for advertisers interested in reaching financially minded users, as it complements our offering in this vertical through MSN Money and other syndication partners,” said Brian McAndrews, senior vice president, Advertiser and Publisher Solutions at Microsoft. “Second, this deal is a strong indicator that we’re gaining significant traction with our advertising platform. The Wall Street Journal Digital Network is one of the largest financial services publishers in a very dynamic vertical segment, and we’re delighted to add it to our portfolio.”
The addition of these sites brings an additional 20 million unique visitors per month to the extended Microsoft network, enabling advertisers to reach out to an increasingly deep and attractive audience in the financial services vertical. The Wall Street Journal Digital Network is expected to begin providing Microsoft contextual advertising in February.
About The Wall Street Journal Digital Network
The Wall Street Journal Digital Network comprises business and financial news websites including The Wall Street Journal Online, the largest paid subscription site on the Web with more than one million subscribers; Barron’s Online, the site of America’s premier financial magazine with 127,000 subscribers; MarketWatch.com, a leading investing and financial news site with 100 journalists in 10 bureaus around the world; and AllThingsD.com, a site devoted to news, analysis and opinion on technology, the Internet and media. Marketers seeking business decision-makers or affluent and influential individuals can reach more than 20 million unduplicated, unique visitors each month across The Wall Street Journal Digital Network.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
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