Media

Yahoo’s Bold Tablet Ad Push

October 6, 2011  •  2 min read  •  By Mike Shields

It’s easy to ignore banner ads. It’s hard to ignore a full-page tablet ad, particularly one that winks at you.

During an Advertising Week presentation in New York on Wednesday, Yahoo introduced Living Ads, a new set of ad units built exclusively for tablet devices. These ads are meant to essentially do one thing: blow traditional display advertising out of the water. And in demos, they do. Living Ads are like something out of Harry Potter — or like the moment in a horror movie when the main character starts seeing things. For example, a mockup Living Ad for a fictional jeans company exhibited subtle, lifelike motion unlike anything a typical skyscraper unit is capable of. At one point, one of the people in the ad even winks at the user.
And since the HTML5-built ads are available only as full-page or third-page ads, they have the potential to deliver serious impact.
“This is about taking digital advertising to next level,” said Paul Cushman, Yahoo’s senior director, mobile strategy. “We think this combines the emotional impact of TV and the sumptuousness of print. This is exactly what the Web was supposed to deliver years ago.”
Yahoo isn’t alone in trying to crack this nut, of course. Apple’s iAds have iPad ad units that are bound to improve. Flipboard is also pushing rich, full-page units. There’s little doubt that the tablet era will usher in better digital advertising. But to get there will entail overcoming technical limitations and getting to enough scale that it makes financial sense for agencies to build the units.
Cushman said that Yahoo has just begun talking to agencies, and he isn’t sure whether Living Ads will become the domain of digital agencies or their traditional brethren. His team is still figuring out what sort of logistical and creative requirements Living Ads will entail, but Yahoo is open to collaborating as much as is needed.
Said Cushman: “When I was at McAnn Erickson, we used to have a saying. ‘Ads can be fast, cheap or high quality, but not all three.’”
https://staging.digiday.com/?p=2362
Most Read
Trending in
Digiday Top Stories
  • Media
    Media Briefing: Why publishers hope chatbots will be the latest retention tool

    This week’s Media Briefing looks into why publishers are building their own artificial intelligence-powered chatbots. Publishers hope chatbots will be the latest retention tool As part of publishers’ integration of generative AI technology into their editorial and business operations, publishers are developing and launching chatbots on their websites. The four publishing executives Digiday interviewed for […]

  • Media
    Test Test

    However, Fitzco’s research “has consistently shown that environmental issues and sustainability are important topics to younger skewing audiences. The focus on social, along with visual representation of data, aligns with the type of content a younger audience consumes,” she said. Joyce, on the other hand, said interest in sustainability content from advertisers and consumers “has […]

  • Media
    This is a Digioh Test

    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Aliquam ac venenatis nisi. Aenean condimentum consequat neque, a semper eros fringilla vel. Sed urna diam, faucibus sed enim ac, dapibus condimentum odio. Duis a mi lobortis, interdum quam at, rutrum erat. Integer non mi vitae sem auctor ornare. Suspendisse faucibus cursus ultrices. Vivamus malesuada tristique purus, […]

  • Modern Newsroom
    The Washington Post invests in climate coverage as its team expands to over 30 journalists

    The Post's climate team continues to expand as the publisher makes big bets on the beat drawing younger audiences.

  • Content & Commerce
    Inside one media company’s strategy to monetize the Fifa World Cup

    Soccer media business Footballco has spent most of 2022 trying to make hay while the sun is shining.