Report: AOL To Acquire Quigo For $300 Million

Nov 6, 2007 at 9:38am ET by Greg Sterling

There are rumors and reports circulating that AOL is about to add Quigo to its now pretty full roster of online ad networks and technologies, which includes Tacoda, Advertising.com, Third Screen Media, Lightningcast, and AdTech. These entities are the backbone of AOL’s “Platform A” integrated online (and mobile) advertising, er, platform. AOL now claims that its has greater reach than any of its online competitors.

Quigo has an impressive client roster of online publishers and has captured a number of publishers from Google with its technology and notion of “independence.” There were rumors that Quigo had been for sale for some time. But there was also talk at one point of an IPO. There has been no confirmation of a deal yet. However, it’s likely that the reports are true.

Stepping back, this as yet unconfirmed acquisition should be seen in the context of the ad network land grab that has included Google-DoubleClick, Microsoft-aQuantive, and Yahoo-BlueLithium and Right Media.

There are also suggestions that the build up of AOL’s advertising network and properties is in preparation for a spin off from parent TimeWarner next year.

Greg Sterling is a Contributing Editor at Search Engine Land, and writes a personal blog Screenwerk, examining the broader world of media and advertising. He also posts at a Local Mobile Search, which is focused on the mobile Internet.

See more articles by Greg Sterling >

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