The multi-year agreement between eBay and Google focused on two main advertising components – text-based ads and click-to-call advertising functionality.
Search advertising giant Google announced the deal they and online marketplace eBay have reached. Outside of the United States, Google will be the exclusive provider of contextual advertising displayed on eBay’s global collection of websites.
On the VoIP side, Google and eBay plan to integrate click-to-call advertising into Skype and Google Talk. There will be revenue sharing involved as part of the agreement, but the companies declined in a statement to discuss financial aspects of the deal.
Soon, Skype users will offer users of its software the opportunity to download the Google Toolbar. Skype will have a button placed on the toolbar to allow for a quick launch of its calling software. Interoperability efforts by both Skype and Google should lead to future text chat and online presence features enabled via open standards.
“This agreement underscores how much we value eBay as a partner,” Google CEO Eric Schmidt said in a statement. “Our technologies will allow us to connect users to relevant advertising across eBay’s international properties. By working together to promote click-to-call functionality through Google Talk and Skype, we are offering advertisers another innovative way to connect with customers.”
The deal gives Google another expansion of its advertising network. Placement on eBay’s heavily trafficked network of websites will begin a testing phase in early 2007. The two firms will evaluate the initiative over a period of several months, and they noted, “The specific components and timing of implementation will depend upon initial test results, and will vary by market, largely driven by local dynamics and joint capabilities.”
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David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
