Microsoft, WSJ Ink Ad Deal

Microsoft Corp. continues its bid to topple Google and Yahoo by announcing on Tuesday it will become the new provider of paid search and contextual advertising links on sites run by The Wall Street Journal.

The deal also covers other sites in the Wall Street Journal Digital Network, including Barrons.com, MarketWatch.com, AllThingsD.com, and other online properties operated by Wall Street Journal owner Dow Jones and Co. As part of the deal, Microsoft becomes the exclusive seller of both contextual and search related text ads. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The move is the latest in a string of deals Microsoft has signed which includes expanding its ad-serving with popular online hangout, Facebook in October. The company also announced a deal with Viacom in December, which was valued at $500 million. Its latest deal was with another financial information company, Edgar Online to which it's the exclusive provider of contextual and video advertising.

This deal is a significant win for Microsoft for two key reasons, Microsoft senior VP Brian McAndrews said in a statement.

First, it makes the extended Microsoft advertising network the premier destination for advertisers interested in reaching financially minded users, as it complements our offering in this vertical through MSN Money and other syndication partners. Second, this deal is a strong indicator that we're gaining significant traction with our advertising platform, McAndrews added.

Microsoft said it will use technology from its Advertiser and Publisher Solutions Group to place third-party, paid search listings on the Dow Jones Web sites.

Microsoft's state-of-the-art advertising platform will enable us to dramatically improve our revenues, said Gordon McLeod, president of the Wall Street Journal Digital Network, in a statement.

The company acquired most of its online advertising technology through its $6 billion acquisition of aQuantive last year - which is the corporate parent of digital ad agency Avenue A-Razorfish.