Beware of Quants: This is great news. The same whiz kids who deep-sixed Wall Street with their fancy computer models and “high-frequency trading” are now sniffing around Internet advertising. The advent of exchanges and data platforms has begun to make the digital ad world look like an equities market. The New York Observer’s BetaBeat blog writes on the Google-Admeld deal from this angle, saying the advent of real-time bidding is attracting Wall Street exiles with ideas on how to make money off the system. Here’s the rub: I’m not sure these folks are interesting in improving adveritsing or its effectiveness. When I read “high-frequency trading,” I immediately suspect they’re interested in making money off trading the impressions. Trading a commodity very quickly and taking a small cut off variations in the price isn’t adding value. BetaBeat
Influencer Snake Oil: There are plenty of doubters when it comes to influencer metrics, a topic I wrote about last month. The recent surge in interest around them has brought out some rebukes. Deep Focus CEO went the diplomatic route, noting on Twitter that influencer measurement firms like Klout don’t replace “homework.” David Chan, an art director in Toronto, was more direct in his assessment.

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