Placements Are Dead, Long Live Data

May 03, 2013 - - 0

Recent Q&A with Krux CEO and co-founder Tom Chavez in AdExchanger.

With Krux’s initial conception of its publisher data management platform (DMP) nearly complete, CEO Tom Chavez is thinking about what’s next for his 2.5-year-old company.  Chavez says, “We had a broad idea of all the pieces that we...
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reflections on mozilla: a bridge too far

March 15, 2013 - Tom Chavez - 0

Mozilla’s recent announcement to begin blocking third-party cookies by default in a future release of their popular Firefox browser continues to send ripples through the digital media industry.  The collective reaction is beginning to reach the same pitch and proportion as the one surrounding Microsoft’s choice to ship IE 10 with ‘Do...
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Web Data Routing and the Future of the Consumer Web

February 04, 2013 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

Since our founding at Krux, we've maintained the conviction that consumer web data is core currency for any company seeking to engage with its consumers.   Businesses coping with the reverberations of the consumer Internet already know that instantaneous, personal, machine-driven experiences aren't just the purview of online advertising or social media.  They define how...
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A Clear-Eyed View of 2013

January 03, 2013 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

With the passing of each year, too many of us prognosticate breathlessly about how big and shiny the coming year is going to be, frequently mistaking clarity for proximity.  It's one thing to know something's coming; it's another thing altogether to predict its timing.  God knows I've added my share of wind to...
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thoughts on cookie licking

September 05, 2012 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

There has been a lot of attention paid to data collection practices web-wide, particularly those occurring via programmatic channels.  Sellers put their media into an exchange, and buyers get a seat on the exchange to ensure access to the bid flow.  Often, without actually buying an impression, those buyers gain access to ‘free’ data. ...
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Microsoft and DNT

June 07, 2012 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

Microsoft's recent decision to include DNT by default in the forthcoming version of Internet Explorer, which is in concert with their engineering team’s longtime support of consumers, has certainly sent ripples across the industry.  While Krux is not a privacy start-up, we are a consumer web data start-up.  As such, we consider...
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Reflections On Web Publishers, Privacy, & Consumer Preference

March 28, 2012 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

These are interesting times for anyone operating on the consumer web.  On Monday the Federal Trade Commission released its final privacy report (PDF).  Last month the European Union released its draft regulation on privacy, and the White House published the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights.  It’s clear that policy makers worldwide have Internet privacy...
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Cloud-Based Consumer Data - Separating Hype from Reality

March 09, 2012 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

Cloud computing has fired the imagination of investors and entrepreneurs like few other new technologies of the last decade.  Like any new meme it offers real possibility, but from my vantage point the hype-to-content ratio for cloud computing has been teetering dangerously into the red zone of late.  If we layer on the extra ambiguities that accompany...
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Reflections on the Krux Apps Launch

February 24, 2012 - tom chavez, co-founder & ceo - 0

Yesterday was a pretty big day for Krux.  On Thursday February 24th, we formally kicked off the public beta of a new offering called Krux Apps.  On the heels of that, I wanted to take a moment and share a few thoughts. 

Krux Apps is a suite of audience, web performance, and revenue optimization...
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the skills to pay the bills

January 17, 2012 - - 0

Some of the wisest cats I know once said:

I've got the skills to pay the bills ya'll I got the got the got the skills to pay the bills I've got the skills to pay the bills

Truer words have never been spoken.  And this from the...
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2012:  A Year of Intelligent Interactions

December 21, 2011 - Tom Chavez - 0

2011 represented a turning point for the consumer web, having brought fundamental changes to how information is stored, shared, and transmitted and to how individuals communicate and connect. To date, bandwidth, storage limits and user access points have suppressed the potential of a web-enabled world. Those barriers have melted away, and consumers are quickly embracing the new normal of hyper-portable...
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Time to move beyond the ad frontier

October 10, 2011 - Tom Chavez - 0

In reflecting upon last week’s IAB MIXX event, I was struck by the disparity between the conference’s espoused purpose – to highlight the success stories people and companies are creating using digital media and interactive platforms – and where the discussions typically veered – which were, sadly, all about ads.

It was odd,...
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looking forward to IAB MIXX

September 28, 2011 - - 0

Next week, I have the distinct honor of hositng a breakout discussion at IAB MIXX.  Joining me is an esteemed group of panelists pulled from all corners of the digiital media market.  It promises to be an insightful and entertaining dialogue about the changing role of  audience data and consumer insight in shaping today's digital...
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a company milestone

September 21, 2011 - - 0

I’m pleased to announce today that Krux has hit another major company-building milestone.  We just closed our latest round of funding, providing new resources to accelerate growth, extend our US leadership position, and expand our global footprint.

The $11M round was led by Accel Partners and IDG Ventures, preeminent players in the media and...
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an interesting turn of events

August 19, 2011 - - 0

Interesting week.

At the end of March, Lotame tried to convince us that their network business was a feature, not a bug. 

We were skeptical and questioned their logic in an open letter to companies who attempt to blur the line between principal and infrastructure provider.

Andy Monfried vigorously disagreed in...
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making web experiences cooler, safer, smarter

August 01, 2011 - - 0

Krux co-founder & CEO Tom Chavez Featured in the IAB 'Meaningful Choice' Series

The consumer Internet is reshaping how businesses--not just consumer Internet or digital media businesses--understand and meet consumer expectations. Consumers expect control over their web experiences, as well as the data that sits behind the decisions companies make in shaping those experiences. They want to...
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going long

June 28, 2011 - Tom Chavez, co-founder & CEO - 0

Today I want to go long and introduce the idea of a Consumer Experience Engine, something we’ve been batting around at Krux.  

The web’s first wave, which started in the mid 90s, introduced what amounts to a parallel consumer universe, an entirely new environment where we can do old things in...
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Thoughts on creating a coherent data strategy

June 21, 2011 - Tom Chavez, co-founder & CEO - 0

Websites, whether they’re large premium publishers or small, niche players, will want to think about the difference between defense and offense when charting out a data strategy.   Defense is about protecting data generated by consumer web interactions.   Offense is about harnessing that value to drive new value from content, commerce, collaboration, or advertising....
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market perspective + new data on consumer sentiment

March 15, 2011 - Tom Chavez, co-founder & CEO - 0

I want to take a moment to share some thoughts on the heels of the IAB summit in Palm Springs. 

What a difference a year makes.  At the same event in 2010 in Carlsbad, the camaraderie and cocktailing were in full effect, but I think we were all still a bit weighed down by the residual...
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The Battle for Consumer Data Continues

February 18, 2011 - Tom Chavez, co-founder and CEO - 0

This post was originally published in AdExchanger

The battle for consumer data just reached a new, much more feverish pitch.

The day before yesterday, Apple announced what a lot of people in our industry have feared and mostly known for some time: they want use the iPad to further disintermediate publishers from their audiences....
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Oh, The Horror

December 03, 2010 - Tom Chavez, co-founder and CEO - 0

Remember the horror movie, “The Ring,” where the scary girl climbs out of the TV and chases the innocent bystander?   I’m not easily spooked during horror movies, but that scene really freaked me out.

It doesn’t just happen in movies.  It’s happening on the...
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Hidden Costs of Data Leakage

July 28, 2010 - Tom Chavez, co-founder and CEO - 0

Today, I shared my thoughts on the hidden costs publishers face from audience data ‘leakage’ in an editorial on AdExchanger.com.

Publishers and the Hidden Costs of Data Leakage

I have received an overwhelming amount of feedback from my last missive. I heard from friends and colleagues in the publisher space,...
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Data:  Deja Vu All Over Again?

June 30, 2010 - Tom Chavez, co-founder and CEO - 0

Today, I shared my thoughts on the importance of publishers’ audience data management practices in an editorial on AdExchanger.com.

Data: Deja Vu All Over Again?

I’d like to take a moment to respond to Tolman Geffs recent query, “Are Publishers &@%$#ed?” (PDF)

The short...
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