Fab Friday Upgrades

Next Thursday, at 6:30pm Pacific Time, Thor Mitchell, Product Manager for the Google Maps API, will be sitting down with myself and Chris Broadfoot for a Google Maps API Office Hours on Google Plus. Thor will be discussing and taking your questions on a variety of subjects, but one of them in particular is upgrading from Google Maps API V2 to V3.



A little over two years ago, we announced that the V2 API was deprecated and V3 was the new production version. The three year deprecation period will be up next May, and the three of us will discuss ways in which developers can move their remaining V2 applications to V3. We’re even starting a new hashtag, #GoV3.



To watch the office hours live, check out our Google+ Page post. As always, the video will be posted to Google+ and YouTube later.



In other news, I stumbled on a couple of open source libraries that might be fun to incorporate into Google Maps API applications.



The first is chronoline.js, which is a library for making a chronology timeline out of events on a horizontal timescale.  It doesn’t have a specific mapping function but would be good for creating time based mapping apps.



The second is also not a mapping app, but allows you to use gamepad controllers in JavaScript. I haven’t tried Gamepad.js, but it looks pretty cool. I’d say it would be particularly useful with the Google Earth API, but might have applications in Street View and Maps as well.



Posted by Mano Marks, Google Maps Developer Relations Team

Halo

Angry Birds

Paris

Google and GroupM Next Launch SPARK Education Series

Today we’re kicking off a partnership with GroupM Next, the innovation unit of GroupM, called Spark, a series of custom, co-programmed events focused on delivering unique education and innovation experiences for brands – specifically, clients of GroupM media agencies. We created this initiative together to cultivate education and dialogue for verticals that are under-represented in the broader digital media space in terms of data, research and opportunity. This partnership is the first of its kind for both Google and GroupM, in that it’s a series dedicated to client-focused education and is designed to address topics that directly impact brand opportunity and performance.



The first event, Spark: CPG, is taking place this afternoon in New York with nine leading CPG companies in attendance. In addition to discussions led by Google and GroupM Next execs, Kantar, Buzzfeed and Amazon are joining us as we, collectively as marketers, share insights, research and digital opportunities brands in the consumer packaged goods category can take advantage of.



A quick rundown of discussions on the docket at Spark: CPG in the context of marketing for CPG brands includes:

• Making the web work for CPG brands – our take on how the consumer, and world around us, has changed


• The digital enhanced path, exploring the ever-changing connection between consumers and brands and opportunities that exist through understanding new consumer behaviors and the role of technology


• Marketing and messaging innovation across multiple screens


• The power of video and building brands with the power of sight, sound and motion


• Developing ‘content gifts’ in the social world and capturing opportunities by engaging your brand’s super sharers


• How mobile commerce can connect shoppers to the places and CPG products they love


• Fostering fluid innovation across marketing and process to enable agencies and brands to meet the pace of change in consumer dynamics and technology

In most cases, Spark will provide brands with insights and education they wouldn’t have access to elsewhere. Additionally, through ongoing collaboration between our companies, GroupM agencies and clients, we’ll identify areas of interest and need for brands across digital media, and foster opportunities as they emerge.

An Insights Recap

Tuesday I had the pleasure of delivering the opening keynote at DoubleClick Insights, a half-day event in which we brought together the industry’s top digital media executives for a series of honest conversations about where the space is headed and how we can move it forward together. In addition to several announcements I summarize below, the event was packed with viewpoints from ecosystem partners and luminaries. If you weren’t one of the thousands who tuned in for the livestream, you can watch it here on the DoubleClick YouTube channel.


Over the last few years, DoubleClick has focused its publisher efforts on helping you maximize revenues across multiple channels and formats. We introduced the next generation of DFP, expanded our capabilities across mobile and video, and acquired Admeld. Today we’re doubling down on publishers by building on this foundation to help you make smarter decisions, capture new spends, and work seamlessly with partners across the ecosystem.

Make Smarter Decisions
We launched the beta of Ad Exchange Market View, an interface that lets you see an aggregated landscape of pricing and uniques across the entire exchange, including which ad formats and regions are likely to get the best returns. It’s data that’s highly actionable, and no other exchange operates with this type of transparency. In addition, we also introduced the integration of 3rd party audience segments into the new version of DFP. For years, buyers have used aggregate audience data to target particular demographics and segments, and we think publishers deserve the same perspectives for their sales process. The early response to this capability has been enthusiastic and we look forward to expanding it further.

Capture New Spend
With its high-touch private exchange, Admeld took pioneering steps toward helping publishers find value in the elusive “middle tier” between direct and indirect sales. We’re continuing to iterate on this model with the launch of AdX Preferred Deals, a tool for publishers to privately negotiate and sell non-guaranteed inventory to individual buyers. Preferred Deals (formerly called Direct Deals), are best suited for publishers who haven’t yet fully embraced the exchange model, and in the coming weeks we’ll share more information with our clients about how they can take part in this closed beta.

Work Easily with Partners
As the ubiquitous Lumascape attests, our ecosystem is complex and in order for digital advertising to be medium that provides a great experience for consumers, marketers and publishers alike, we all need to work together. DoubleClick believes in the power of openness, and we’re privileged to work with over 200 partners. This includes 100+ for core DFP, 40+ for mobile, 40+ for video, and a dozen each for data and rich media. Together, in partnership with the ecosystem, we’re ready to help you explore the next growth areas, and drive the revenue that funds a new generation of great content.

A Word About Digital Marketing Manager
Lastly, I wanted to mention an big announcement we made on the buy side -- the introduction of DoubleClick Digital Marketing Manager (DDM), a integrated buy-side platform that will ultimately unify audience buying and reporting across all digital channels and formats -- search, display, social, desktop, mobile and video. DDM will help buyers spend more and spend smarter. As a publisher, that means means more revenue for you and better ad experiences for your audience. You can read more about DDM at the DoubleClick Advertiser Blog.

My main takeaway from Insights, is that we’re entering an exciting new phase in this industry--one in which everything is being re-imagined, from the ads themselves to the ways they’re created, delivered, transacted and measured. DoubleClick’s goal isn’t just to help you thrive in this change, but help you drive it in ways that meet your evolving business needs. In short, our success is based on yours.

Posted by Neal Mohan, Vice President of Display Advertising

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