Microsoft to Battle Google in Advertising

Brian McAndrews, the head of Microsoft's recently acquired Internet advertising company aQuantive, says he intends to beat Google's DoubleClick. Microsoft aims to provide advertisers with a log of all the online locations where people see ads before going to advertisers' Web sites.

New York Times has more.

Trump Magazine back in print

New York Business reports that Donald Trump and Ocean Drive magazine Chairman Jerry Powers will announce a new partnership and the relaunch of the eponymous title at a press conference on Sept. 25 at the Trump Tower. The luxury quarterly will make its comeback in late November and will focus on fashion and home design.

The Donald has been down this road before--first with the short-lived Trump Style, which was distributed in Mr. Trump's hotels, then with Trump World, which was later relaunched as Trump Magazine.

That title ceased publication in the spring. According to an industry insider, Trump Publisher Michael Jacobson had gone to Mr. Powers with a plan to revive the title, but was forced out of the arrangement.

Messrs. Jacobson and Trump could not be reached. Mr. Powers declined to comment.

One former Trump executive says that, despite being a billionaire, The Donald has too much of a nouveau riche image for the magazine to succeed. "Luxury advertisers just avoid him like the plague," he says.

'We will crush the FT' says News Corp

PETER Chernin, the president of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, promised the media giant will "crush" the Financial Times after acquiring its big rival in America, reports The Scotsman.

In his first public comments since agreeing to spend $5bn (£2.5bn) on Dow Jones, the owner of the Wall Street Journal, Murdoch's right-hand man fired the first round in the battle to establish the Wall Street Journal as a global financial-news brand. His comments pitch News Corp squarely against Pearson, owner of the Financial Times.
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After addressing the biennial conference of the Royal Television Society at Cambridge University last week, Chernin told Scotland on Sunday that Murdoch had no ambition to buy the FT or collaborate with it to accelerate his goal to create a global brand.

The Financial Times dominates the European market and the Wall Street Journal is stronger in North America.

Chernin said: "We don't want to buy the FT. News Corp will crush it."

He dismissed the notion that even a crushed FT would be attractive at a discounted price. "We don't want it," he said.

He also said there was space within the media giant for both the Fox Business Channel, which launches next month, and CNBC, owned by NBC Universal, which has a contract with the Wall Street Journal until 2012.

"The two will compete against each other," he said. "In many ways competition among News Corp businesses has proven to be a healthy thing."

During the conference Chernin told broadcasting delegates that there were big rewards for those that innovate, and that those who did not would be "toast".

He said media groups with established brands were best-placed to guide viewers through the maze of content.

He said: "No one else has the power and no one has as much experience in packaging content to appeal to consumers."

Journal Starts Monthly Magazine

The Wall Street Journal will announce today that it is launching a monthly glossy magazine called Pursuits, designed to explore "the world of wealth," according to the Journal's publisher, Dow Jones & Co.

Aimed at building the Journal's consumer advertising revenue, including from luxury-goods and travel advertisers, the new magazine is expected to launch next September, distributed with the Journal's Saturday edition. Its content will be made available free online, outside the Journal's paid subscription wall.

Plans for the new magazine were completed last week at a meeting between Dow Jones executives and Rupert Murdoch, chief executive and chairman of News Corp., which has agreed to buy Dow Jones for more than $5 billion.

The Journal has used the Pursuits name as the title of the lifestyle section of its Saturday edition since launching the Saturday paper two years ago, but it dropped the name this past weekend. The name Weekend Journal now appears on the lifestyle section of the Saturday paper, in addition to the Friday edition.

The Journal didn't name an editor for the magazine, but Robert Frank, the paper's wealth reporter and author of the book "Richistan," about lifestyles of rich people, has been heavily involved in its conception and is expected to play a senior role in the magazine.

Innovate or die says News Corp. chief

CAMBRIDGE, U.K. — News Corp. topper Peter Chernin has urged British TV chiefs to adopt innovative, risk-taking strategies and embrace new media -- or risk extinction.

Speaking at the Royal Television Society’s Cambridge Convention, president and chief operating officer of News Corp., said that traditional media companies must embrace digital media or risk extinction

News Corp. No. 2 exec Peter Chernin added that, "To dismiss user-generated content as crap and blogs as unauthoritative is not only unproductive, but a waste of time."

Chernin said the world of multi-platforms had created a truly Darwinian entertainment industry where only those fleet of foot would thrive.“There are huge rewards for those who innovate and death to those who do not,” he said.

“There has been a fundamental shift that has completely democratized our business,” he said. The News Corp. chief said there was a “golden opportunity” for media companies to make money from this new consumer-driven model.

“We possess the world’s most recognized and loved brands, and have the opportunity to leverage them in new ways.”

He added, “To dismiss user-generated content as crap and blogs as unauthoritative is not only unproductive, but a waste of time.”

Nokia to acquire Enpocket to create a global mobile advertising leader

Enpocket to provide Nokia with a platform to accelerate scaling of its mobile advertising businessEspoo, Finland - Nokia and Enpocket today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Nokia to acquire Enpocket (www.enpocket.com). Enpocket is a global leader in mobile advertising; providing technology and services that allow brands to plan, create, execute, measure and optimize mobile advertising campaigns around the world. By acquiring Enpocket, Nokia will accelerate the scaling of its mobile advertising business, leveraging Enpocket's platform and strong partnerships with advertisers, publishers and operators. In addition to key assets, through this transaction Nokia is gaining a team with strong expertise in global mobile advertising across disciplines.

"Nokia has already announced its intention to be a leading company in consumer Internet services and we believe that mobile advertising will be an important element in monetizing those services for our customers and partners. Enpocket's mature leading edge platform and people expertise are a strong fit with Nokia existing capabilities in the mobile advertising market," said Tero Ojanperä, Chief Technology Officer, Nokia. "This acquisition is a game changing move to bring the reach and depth of Nokia to organize the market across the world, and make it easier for an ecosystem to develop."

Enpocket is a privately-owned company, established in 2001 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. The innovative technology that drives the Enpocket platform is a mobile advertising campaign management and delivery system distinguished by advanced consumer insight, targeting, and measurement. The platform can deliver mobile advertising across multiple formats including SMS, MMS, mobile Internet advertising, and video. Enpocket is powering mobile advertising for leading mobile operators and publishers across the globe and has an ad sales force that is working with large brands.

"Effective interactive advertising on the mobile device can create tremendous value for the mobile industry while bringing new Internet services to people around the world," said Enpocket President and Chief Executive Officer, Mike Baker. "Enpocket and Nokia are combining to provide the leadership needed to define, build and standardize globally the business of mobile advertising so that brands can easily and efficiently engage consumers on their personal devices."

The agreement is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2007.

Ericsson and Endemol sign global partnership

Ericsson and Endemol International B.V. today announced a global partnership agreement to develop interactive TV and user-generated content via Ericsson's 'Me-On-TV' solution.

The Ericsson 'Me-On-TV' solution was developed in partnership with Endemol, a global leader in TV and digital entertainment, and Dutch technology company Triple IT.

'Me-On-TV' is a network and device-independent technology, allowing consumers to upload, publish and share live or pre-recorded video content via any mobile device, from anywhere to any screen around the world. Consumers can transmit to websites, TV broadcasts, or stay in contact with friends in a community. It also allows broadcasters, internet sites, and mobile network operators to directly manage live and on demand content via state-of-the-are editorial management tools.

Jan Wäreby, Senior Vice President and Head of Ericsson's multimedia business, says: "This global partnership flags Ericsson's commitment to establish a leading position in multimedia. It shows our partnership approach with innovators in complementary fields to develop consumer solutions for multiple screens that can benefit media companies and operators alike."

William Linders, Executive Director of Digital Media at Endemol International, says: "We're delighted to be working with Ericsson on this exciting new technology. The market for digital content is rapidly evolving and 'Me-On-TV' could have a significant impact on the way consumers interact with TV and digital media."

'Me-On-TV' will be offered as a white-label service to content aggregators such as broadcasters, internet sites, and network operators. It will be delivered as an end-to-end service, fully integrated, hosted and managed by Ericsson.

Endemol will act as a distributor for 'Me-On-TV', licensing the technology as an integrated service in existing and newly developed TV and multimedia formats. 'Me-On-TV' is already being used by Endemol in the Netherlands. Last season's Big Brother TV series saw ex-housemates using the technology to communicate with the house, and this week Endemol in the Netherlands launched the "Ik op TV" format on TV and the internet, in which 'Me-On-TV' is used by citizens to broadcast live and recorded content from their mobile phones, as well as to broadcast live interviews to the program.