On March 3, 2008, Microsoft went live with an upgrade to its adCenter Analytics Beta. Also referred to as Project Gatineau, Microsoft adCenter Analytics Beta is designed as a free Web analytics application. With free being the keyword, since the introduction of the initial beta for Microsoft adCenter Analytics, the application required a $5 sign up fee. And while $5 might very well be close to free, the fact of the matter is that Google Analytics were actually free, and in this respect, Microsoft needed to take care of completely opening up Project Gatineau.

"Since we launched the Beta at the end of October, we've been listening to our customer's feedback and working hard to incorporate any requests and suggestions. One of the pieces of feedback we received was about the $5 adCenter sign up fee. Moving forward, we've now waived that fee for Analytics customers. This new version includes many additional reports and data views to help you analyze your website's traffic and give you a better handle on the success of ALL your marketing campaigns," revealed Mel Carson, adCenter Community Manager - Europe.

Now that users will be able to get their own free analytics-only account, they will also be able to take advantage of the added tools and features synonymous with the upgrade. Microsoft now makes available via adCenter Analytics Beta an application for auto-tagging websites, commerce ROI and campaign timeline reports, as well as Tree-map reports for Traffic and Inbound referrals, according to Amit Fulay, Lead Program Manager adCenter team. Furthermore, Gatineau now features the capability to import paid search campaigns over from Google and Yahoo, but also tools offering an indepth perspective over the age-gender segment as well as visitor loyalty metrics.

"Access new reports such as in-depth visitor tracking, treemap views (colour-coded snapshot graphics that allow you to quickly understand complex data), and campaign reporting. Use summary report rollups to gain insights about ROI, visitor loyalty, conversions by referral, and campaign timeline view, which displays a color-coded timeline of multiple campaign performances. Track marketing results beyond search ads. Analytics campaign performance reporting covers ROI, conversion rates, and revenue of banner, e-mail, and direct response marketing campaigns. View and compare pay-per-click (PPC) campaign performance for multiple ad placement programs-not just adCenter. View performance for adCenter and third-party online advertising programs within a single reporting interface," Carson stated.