Outbrain is focused on helping people discover new and compelling content online. As a result, the commercial applications of Outbrain are:
• Increased page views and revenue: Outbrain can be used by publishers as a service for recommending personalised interesting content to readers to increase page views, generate revenue and enhances the user experience. Outbrain generates links to interesting content on a publisher’s own website and can also be used to link to external, revenue-generating, third-party content.
• Attracting new audiences to content: Outbrain’s traffic acquisition programme can be used by publishers and marketers to drive new users to specific content in order grow audiences and hit advertiser targets. Outbrain enables content-creating organisations to attract new audiences, by including it alongside other publishers’ own editorial.
Yaron Galai (pictured), Outbrain’s CEO comments: “The Holy Grail for online publishers and content creators is to ensure firstly that their content is found, and secondly, that it is interesting enough to really engage that audience. Outbrain’s main aim is to help readers discover more interesting content and have a better experience online; this translates into a win-win option for publishers and content creators alike.”
“We know that there is a lot happening in the digital content space in UK and European markets, and that publishers and content owners are all working on different models to make content pay, from pay walls to ad walls. I believe that we are seeing a shift to a less disruptive approach to advertising which is resonating well with a more sophisticated audience.”
Outbrain’s platform has already launched on five large online publishers in the UK, including Future Publishing’s TechRadar. Kurt Edwards, Digital Commercial Director, Future Publishing comments: “From the very outset we are quickly seeing the benefits of working with Outbrain. Allowing our users to discover new and interesting content has led to a more engaged audience plus it is building incremental revenue streams for us as a publisher.”
Simon Edelstyn, formerly European Director of Syndication at Google, will be heading up Outbrain’s business development across Europe, from the company’s newly opened office in London. Simon has recently recruited Marc Irwin from Vibrant to strengthen the business development team.
Outbrain’s senior management team is led by entrepreneurs with a credible track record in online business – Yaron Galai, who is co-founder, previously founded Quigo.com, a performance-based marketing solution which was acquired by AOL in December 2007.
The UK launch news follows on from Outbrain’s recent acquisition of AOL property, Surphace as well as securing a third round of funding ($11million).
The core Outbrain service is free for publishers and can be easily installed here.
About Outbrain
Outbrain says: “Outbrain is the leading content recommendation platform, reaching a highly engaged audience through distribution on top publisher sites, including USA Today, iVillage, Boston.com, Chicago Tribune, Newsweek, TheStreet, The Boston Globe and Slate. Outbrain provides publishers a service for recommended links to increase traffic and generate revenue, and marketers a way to their distribute content alongside publisher's own editorial recommendations. Outbrain acquired content recommendation platform Surphace (formerly known as Sphere) in February 2011. Founded in 2006, the company is headquartered in New York with R&D in Netanya, Israel, and is backed by Carmel Ventures, Gemini Israel Funds, GlenRock Israel, Rhodium and Lightspeed Venture Partners.”
