Opera launch an ad exchange

Seems like everyone wants to own an ad empire, Google, Apple, Microsoft and now Opera.

Browser software company Opera has a launched what it calls a “revolutionary platform” for publishers who want to capitalise on the “untapped potential” of the 66.5 million Opera Mini users worldwide.

The Open Mobile Ad Exchange service, is a cloud-based offering that allows publishers, advertisers, and wireless operators to advertise on feature phones and smartphones running Opera Mini, and that of course includes the iPhone and it seems apps.

Features of the Open Mobile Ad Exchange include:
– Control over advertising monetisation via near-real-time reporting and analytics.
– Sophisticated campaign management, frequency control and targeting results.

The system, from what we can see, uses standard embedded JavaScript, which can be then used in apps and on webpages, and when the JavaScript is run it calls the Open Mobile Ad Exchange which returns an ad. So that unlike many other systems the ads appear where you want them on the page, rather than being stuck at the top or bottom of the page.

According to Opera the Open Mobile Ad Exchange is “easy to implement” and the ads “reach a broad and diverse audience using Opera Mini or other browsers.” So this isn’t just for Opera Mini, although the “broad and diverse audience” may not go down too well with the advertising luddities who just want “iPhone” users or “ABC1’s in the South East.”

“We have spent the last ten years building a mobile browser that delivers a great user experience,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software. “Today marks a new chapter in our company, helping publishers, developers and mobile operators drive their mobile revenues by reaching out to and engaging a savvy global audience. Whether you want to monetize a free site or application or raise the visibility of your existing content, the Open Mobile Ad Exchange gives you a single point of access and control.”

For more details visit http://www.opera.com/openmobileadexchange