AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft Reportedly in Ad Deal

Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft, three major technology companies that have traditionally competed for digital advertising revenue, have created an unusual partnership in which they will sell ads for one another.

The move represents an effort to challenge Google, which dominates the search advertising market and has increased its efforts in display advertising. The companies also hope to entice other online publishers to join their partnership. And by joining together and selling for one another, they hope to reduce the need for third-party ad networks that often sell some of the less desirable ad space on their sites.