Yahoo counts on in-your-face ads

Yahoo said it will incorporate the technologies of Eyeblaster, EyeWonder, PointRoll and Unicast to boost the interactive advertising packages that it sells to clients. Yahoo said the deal will help it more easily sell catchier advertising campaigns.

The four companies have developed technologies that make it hard to avoid Web advertisements. Eyeblaster produces flash-animated pop-up ads; PointRoll technology expands ad banners when a mouse cursor touches it; EyeWonder lets advertisers stream video commercials onto a Web page; and Unicast creates ads that allow users to navigate within them without leaving a Web site.

The agreements underscores Yahoo's latest attempt to sell more interactive advertisements throughout its sites. When the Internet bubble burst two years ago, advertisers began loudly questioning the effectiveness of advertising on the Net, pushing most Web media companies to develop more creative--and arguably more intrusive--advertising campaigns.

Advertisers, many of whom paid exorbitant fees to place static ad banners with little in return, now demand that Web companies show clearer proof of a campaign's effectiveness.

Web media companies such as the New York Times Digital, MSNBC.com and CNET Networks, the publisher of News.com, have also been pushing the envelope in serving larger, flashier advertisements. Some of these initiatives have been controversial, upsetting Web users with their in-your-face approach.