Microsoft Moves Against Google with Auction Ad Exchange Company

AdECN is the latest online advertising platform to be swallowed by Microsoft. In the Internet advertising face-off between Microsoft and Google, the Redmond company has gone in a shopping frenzy. Following the announcements of the planned acquisition of aQuantive, a global digital marketing company worth the same as Windows Vista, no less than $6 billion dollars, AdECN's addition to Microsoft's portfolio will deliver an auction-based exchange for online advertising to the company's clients. In this manner, Microsoft is building its vision of an Internet-wide advertising platform addressing not only advertisers but also publishers and ad agencies.

"Both Microsoft and AdECN have a deep commitment to creating the technologies and platforms that enable advertisers and publishers to maximize their ROI in the digital marketplace," said Kevin Johnson, president, Platforms and Services Division at Microsoft. "We believe the addition of AdECN to the Microsoft portfolio is a perfect fit and will create more efficiency for the industry by forming a more robust marketplace between advertisers and publishers, aggregating more supply and demand. This is good for the whole advertising industry."

AdECN essentially functions much in the same manner as a stock exchange, only that instead of financial brokerages dealing with equities, the platform is a hub for networks to transact online display advertising. Microsoft's perspective is that through AdECN it would offer a "neutral, real-time auction marketplace" for advertising networks. Basically, via AdECN, the Redmond company aims to bridge advertisers with publishers increasing the scope of inventory for the former and profits for the latter.

"Joining forces with Microsoft will provide the capital and resources to enable AdECN to scale the exchange at a much faster pace, making it more attractive to the advertising networks and other traffic aggregators looking to better serve their advertisers and publishers," said William Urschel, founder and chief executive officer, AdECN. "All of us here are thrilled to join a team that shares our commitment to neutrality for the exchange and also believes that creating liquidity and intelligently matching supply and demand will be two of the most important roles for a technology provider to play in this rapidly growing and evolving market."