Last week, during the SES show, I heard the rumors about the possibility that AOL will be dropping Google AdWords for MSN's adCenter product "really soon." But I haven't had time to post the information here until now. Gary Price has some information at the SEW Blog and Brett Tabke at WebmasterWorld started a thread a week ago Tuesday named AOL to Drop Google and Sign with MSN. In that post he links to this Reuters article and quotes it;
Time Warner Inc is closing in on a deal with Microsoft Corp. to team up on an online advertising service to compete with Google Inc, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the talks. The paper said the two companies were now focusing on a deal that would combine their advertising-related assets, with little or no money changing hands. It said they expected to reach an agreement before the end of the year, but that it was still possible that Time Warner's America Online unit could strike a deal with competitor Google instead. Time Warner has been holding talks with both Microsoft and Google over AOL, sources familiar with the situation have told Reuters and other media.
This can be a major shake up for the industry. One member says, "This could have a massive impact on webmaster community." As eWhisper says, "Very interesting things ahead in 2006, and this is just the beginning."
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
