Facebook Gets Personal With Ad Targeting Plan

FACEBOOK GETS PERSONAL WITH AD TARGETING PLAN
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal 8/23, AUTHOR: Vauhini Vara vauhini.vara@wsj.com]
Social-networking Web site Facebook is quietly working on a new advertising system that would let marketers target users with ads based on the massive amounts of information people reveal on the site about themselves. Eventually, it hopes to refine the system to allow it to predict what products and services users might be interested in even before they have specifically mentioned an area. As the industry watches the Palo Alto (CA), start-up to see if it can translate its popularity into bigger profits, Facebook has made the new ad plan its top priority. The plan is at an early stage and could change, but the aim is to unveil a basic version of the service late this fall.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB118783296519606151.html
(requires subscription)

* Why Google Exec. is 'Intrigued' by Facebook
Marissa Mayer, the search giant's vice president of search products and user experience, admitted in a keynote address that she has a bit of Facebook-envy. Mayer said she's "intrigued" by Facebook's ability to collect information about the connections people make at the social networking site, such as how they met online. "This information is particularly useful; we should do that," said Mayer.
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3695801