Microsoft Corp. announced that it has built a world-class video ad serving solution for the Associated Press (AP) Online Video Network (OVN) using MSN Video and Atlas AdManager. AP media-member and customer web sites will now have the capabilities to sell and deliver local advertisements with local content. This is the first joint solution from MSN and Atlas since the close of the aQuantive Inc. acquisition, marking a major collaborative milestone for Microsoft’s newly formed Advertiser and Publisher Solutions (APS) Group.

Powered by a “white-labeled” version of the MSN Video player and featuring exclusive AP content produced specifically for the Web, the AP OVN provides high-quality, in-depth reports from the world’s largest news-gathering agency, reaching 61 million unique visitors and serving more than 1,800 affiliates across the United States. With the new ad serving platform, the AP OVN will now be able to serve local video ad inventory, allowing such OVN affiliates as WCBD-TV in Charleston, S.C., and The Knoxville News Sentinel in Knoxville, Tenn., to drive deeper audience engagement in their sites and generate additional advertising revenue.

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