Targeted-Ad Initiative Is Crucial for MySpace

BY AMOL SHARMA AND EMILY STEEL

Word Count: 1,067  |  Companies Featured in This Article: Procter & Gamble, Adidas, Dow Jones

When News Corp. reports its fiscal 2008 earnings Tuesday, investors will scrutinize the company's plans to generate more advertising revenue from the enormous amount of traffic on its MySpace social-networking Web site.

One initiative that could be critical to MySpace's success, according to media buyers and industry analysts, is a system that lets marketers aim their ads at particular groups of users. As part of this "hypertargeting" system, MySpace has analyzed the profiles of its users to gauge their interests and then categorized them into more than 1,000 "buckets," including rodeo watchers, scrapbook enthusiasts and "Dancing With the Stars" viewers.