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OPA Intelligence Reports 2003

The OPA Intelligence Report is a bi-weekly publication summarizing important news and research for the online publishing industry. You can sign up to receive the Intelligence Report using the form on the left.
Past Articles:
 

NEWS

  • Saddam capture boosts online news
  • Opt-in or opt-out? Spam laws take sides
  • Net plays increasing role in presidential election

RESEARCH

  • Online ads boom in U.S. and U.K.
  • Interactive, varied ad formats do better
  • OPA: 2003 was a darned good year


December 22, 2003Saddam capture boosts online news
 

NEWS

  • Social networking sites: The future of classified advertising?
  • IGN, GameSpy merge to create gaming giant
  • IE could deliver fatal blow to pop-ups

RESEARCH

  • NetRatings: Seniors coming online in droves
  • European Roundup: More time spent online; ad $ to rise
  • WebSideStory: CNET bags highest conversion rate


December 8, 2003Social networking sites: The future of classified advertising?
 

NEWS

  • ONA confab big on blogs, video
  • MSN hits profitability, unveils Newsbot
  • AOL moves into multimedia search, finds Love.com

RESEARCH

  • Online ad income could jump 20% for five years
  • OPA: Publishers rake in 46% more ad sales in 3Q
  • Ball State: Multitasking pervasive in media usage


November 24, 2003ONA confab big on blogs, video
 

NEWS

  • Ad:Tech searches for even more growth
  • Pay or Free?: CanWest's tiers, Time Warner's wall
  • Portal, search take priority in MSN's split

RESEARCH

  • Young men tuning out TV, turning on Net
  • Advertising.com: Online ads have delayed impact on buys
  • DoubleClick: Rich media doubles in usage


November 10, 2003Ad:Tech searches for even more growth
 

NEWS

  • Publishers hit financial grand slam online in 3Q
  • Pay or Free?: MSN Video's free pass; WSJ's pay-politics play
  • Sports Roundup: Fantasy sports, gamecasts score big

RESEARCH

  • Online ads, usage hit a home run in Europe
  • Initiative: Net runs past cable TV for California election news
  • Borrell: Auto advertisers jump on online pitch


October 27, 2003Publishers hit financial grand slam online in 3Q
 

NEWS

  • Yahoo!: Earnings bonanza
  • Starcom, McDonald's lead charge of big ad players
  • Weblog Roundup: NY Times, Tech Review, Perseus survey

RESEARCH

  • Jupiter: Rich media to make publishers richer
  • GartnerG2: Print publishers unsure of online future
  • Forbes.com: Execs rely on Net for biz news


October 14, 2003Yahoo!: Earnings bonanza
 

NEWS

  • Red Herring back in action online
  • Weblog Newbies: News.com, Wired mag, Weblogsinc
  • Pay or Free?: Reed, Canada.com, MSN charge ahead

RESEARCH

  • OPA: Youthful broadband users drive paid content
  • NetRatings: Traditional advertisers upping online ante
  • Arbitron: Net streaming media usage explodes


September 30, 2003Red Herring back in action online
 

NEWS

  • Dog days ending for AOL?
  • Judge: Adware pop-up ads annoying, but legal
  • Is self-publishing online viable beyond Drudge?

RESEARCH

  • OPA: Surfers want to get political info online
  • Online ad resurgence continues, despite contextual setback
  • Dieringer: Branding online drives purchases offline


September 15, 2003Dog days ending for AOL?
 

NEWS

  • Is email dead, and will RSS replace it?
  • Free or Fee?: Embattled BBC wants to open up archives
  • Blackout electrifies web traffic, keyword sales
  • ET, Yahoo! ink online content deal

RESEARCH

  • IAB: Online ad spending on the rise
  • DoubleClick: Email marketing can overcome spam


September 2, 2003Is email dead, and will RSS replace it?
 

NEWS

  • Contextual ads all the rage on big content sites
  • Pay or Free?: NYT pay tracker vs. Google's free alerts
  • CareerBuilder makes monster move on AOL, MSN

RESEARCH

  • Veronis: Consumers to use Net more at expense of print
  • GartnerG2: Media buyers to double online outlays by '05
  • Return Path: Legit email being blocked by filters


August 19, 2003Contextual ads all the rage on big content sites
 

NEWS

  • Pay or Free?: LA Times, KeepMedia try pay; MSN free
  • AOL unveils 9.0 in face of SEC, ad money troubles
  • Merrill Brown, Real part ways over direction

RESEARCH

  • Harris: Teens, gays choose web over other media
  • DoubleClick: Rich media, big ads surging
  • Jupiter: Paid search will drive online ad market


August 4, 2003Pay or Free?: LA Times, KeepMedia try pay; MSN free
 

NEWS

  • CNET lets marketers follow people's Trax online
  • Weblog Advance: MarketingFix bought; About.com goes blog wild
  • Legal Roundup: WhenU's pop-ups; libel protections

RESEARCH

  • OPA: Site loyalty improves ad effectiveness
  • SA: Price -- not content -- matters for high-speed surfers
  • Borrell: TV stations pulling in millions online


July 4, 2003CNET lets marketers follow people's Trax online
 

NEWS

  • ABC pushes motion video, drops Yahoo feed
  • Confab Roundup: Resurgent AdTech; business blogs
  • WSJ targets ads by tracking behavior
  • NYTimes opens archives for bloggers

RESEARCH

  • IAB, Goldman: Online advertising on upswing
  • FCC, Nielsen: Broadband penetration continues


June 23, 2003ABC pushes motion video, drops Yahoo feed
 

NEWS

  • Will FCC rule changes affect online landscape?
  • Financial, dating sites boomerang upward
  • AOL settles with Microsoft, loses subs, gains ads

RESEARCH

  • Horowitz: No premium for broadband content
  • IAB: Interstitials excite viewers of McD's sandwich
  • JAMA: 40% of Net users look for health info


June 9, 2003Will FCC rule changes affect online landscape?
 

NEWS

  • Will Verizon DSL cuts spark a broadband price war?
  • Slate makes history with NPR show, Doonesbury deal
  • War can't thwart OPA members' Q1 revenue jump

RESEARCH

  • OPA: Deeper data on the At Work audience
  • Corzen: 49% of newspapers offer Web-only job ads
  • Pew: 50% boost for broadband use -- slow growth ahead


May 27, 2003Will Verizon DSL cuts spark a broadband price war?
 

NEWS

  • Upfront: Online ads, get 'em while they're hot!
  • FT.com, Real hit subscriber milestones
  • Gates to NAA: Microsoft is not a content company
  • WSJ.com buddies up to instant messaging

RESEARCH

  • DoubleClick: Rich media taking hold, working magic
  • Borrell: Newspaper sites get 40% of local online ad money


May 12, 2003Upfront: Online ads, get 'em while they're hot!
 

NEWS

  • Here come the half-page ads! Are banners safe?
  • War brings record page views, if not revenues
  • McDonald's fries the past with Net push
  • Weblogs shut by publishers who fear conflicts

RESEARCH

  • Pew: More people becoming digital dropouts
  • IAB: Broadband kicks UK online ads into high gear


April 28, 2003Here come the half-page ads! Are banners safe?
 

NEWS

  • AT&T, Pico-Pay try to jumpstart micropayments
  • To charge or not to charge for war video online?
  • Google admired for ad sales, attacked for PR in Google News

RESEARCH

  • Pew: More Americans turning to Net news for war coverage
  • LRG, eMarketer weigh in on broadband explosion
  • Forbes.com: The online ad guarantee is working


April 14, 2003AT&T, Pico-Pay try to jumpstart micropayments
 

NEWS

  • War puts strain, spotlight on news sites, weblogs
  • AOL puts magazines behind paid wall
  • Jupiter Confab: Pay vs. free; Weather.com's new service
  • Yahoo Platinum a Real killer or real bummer?

RESEARCH

  • Jupiter: Paid content grows but ad-supported model rules
  • Nielsen: Traditional adverts coming onboard the Net


March 31, 2003War puts strain, spotlight on news sites, weblogs
 

NEWS

  • Will the Net triumph in war coverage?
  • ABCNews.com beats cable to 24-hour web channel
  • Primedia, Google take paid links further
  • OPA adds members, expands to Europe

RESEARCH

  • OPA: Paid content rings up $1.3 billion in '02
  • Forbes.com: Execs go for web instead of newspapers
  • Nielsen, comScore offer daypart products


March 17, 2003Will the Net triumph in war coverage?
 

NEWS

  • comScore snafu shows complexity of at-work measurement
  • Mobile Roundup: What kind of cell content pays?
  • Google/Blogger could push weblogs into news search mix
  • AOL, Napster push pay music services -- against the odds

RESEARCH

  • eMarketer: At-work audience 50 million strong, affluent
  • AdRelevance: Fortune 500 riding rich media rail
  • Washingtonpost.com: Affluent users are online, researching buys


March 3, 2003comScore snafu shows complexity of at-work measurement
 

NEWS

  • Are paid links viable for big media sites?
  • Yahoo takes on RealOne, readies broadband content package
  • Confab Roundup: Paid content at NAA; Euro view at IP Zurich
  • NYTimes.com pioneers half-page and wide angle ads

RESEARCH

  • U of Md.: At-work surfing balanced by at-home work
  • OPA: Dayparts study shows primacy of daytime online
  • UCLA: Web viewed as most important medium by surfers


February 17, 2003Are paid links viable for big media sites?
 

NEWS

  • Earnings Roundup: 2002 goes out with a bang for publishers
  • Reebok's Tate leads cross-media Super Bowl Web blitz
  • Digital Rights Roundup: RIAA wins; Supremes extend copyright

RESEARCH

  • E&P: Registrations don't slow newspaper site readership
  • DoubleClick: Big, rich, targeted ads score in '02
  • MORI: More proof Internet rules as daytime primetime


February 3, 2003Earnings Roundup: 2002 goes out with a bang for publishers
 

 

NEWS

  • Case closed at AOL; Parsons ascends
  • Yahoo pulls in bucks, eyes Euro access deals
  • Ask Jeeves maligns the banner ad
  • CBS MW: Ad separation a dilemma for publishers

RESEARCH

  • Crystal balls show online ad upswing in '03
  • GartnerG2: Pop-ups annoy more than rich media
  • NetRatings: From gramps to dudes, broadband rocks


January 20, 2003Case closed at AOL; Parsons ascends
 

NEWS

  • Yahoo in search of search strategy with Inktomi buy
  • Wireless Roundup: Popular services; few profits
  • Can Orbitz, CommFlash make pop-ups work?
  • MSNBC.com tops online news ranking

RESEARCH

  • Pew Internet: Even non-users believe in Web's info-power
  • Reveries: Challenges remain for cross-media marketing plans


January 6, 2003Yahoo in search of search strategy with Inktomi buy