YuMe, the largest online video advertising network, announced that it has been selected by Microsoft Corp. to complement Microsoft’s existing video advertising services. Scheduled to begin this summer, YuMe will provide video advertising network management capabilities and sales for unsold inventory on Microsoft’s online properties.

“In working with YuMe, we will further maximize the value of our unsold video inventory through YuMe’s robust platform for video advertising network management,” said Rob Bennett, general manager, MSN Entertainment, Video & Sports, Microsoft. “YuMe offers the ability to connect additional ad networks to its platform, and we plan on utilizing this service to provide YuMe and other ad networks access to Microsoft’s unsold video inventory.”

YuMe will monetize Microsoft’s video advertising inventory by selling Microsoft’s excess video ad inventory as part of YuMe’s network of channels (News, Sports, Entertainment, etc.), allowing advertisers to purchase by audience and content genre.

“YuMe brings a best in class video advertising platform and sales team to Microsoft to immediately monetize excess video inventory on Microsoft properties,” said Jayant Kadambi, CEO and co-founder of YuMe. “Our selection by Microsoft is testament to both our technology’s strength and our expertise in helping publishers best monetize their content and advertisers best reach their desired target audience.”

As part of the agreement Microsoft will also utilize NetworkMe, a capability of YuMe’s advertising platform that allows publishers to aggregate all of their video content into one private ad network, providing a consolidated view of available inventory. With NetworkMe a publisher gains unprecedented inventory liquidity and the ability to maximize CPMs
and fill-rates across multiple properties.

About YuMe
YuMe is the first dedicated video advertising network and ad management system built exclusively for the new world of Web video. With 400+ websites, more than 150 million video streams, and 46.9 million unique visitors, the YuMe network provides both audience scale and quality reach for advertisers. The YuMe ad management system gives advertisers and publishers the unprecedented ability to identify, classify, and track content to ensure brand safety, contextual relevance, controlled syndication, and consistent delivery across all digital media platforms-Web, downloads, mobile, and IPTV. Key YuMe innovations include the first cross-platform ad solution and the ability to serve multiple ad formats and placements through a single, unified system. YuMe is a privately held company headquartered in Redwood City, CA and backed by Khosla Ventures, Accel Partners, BV Capital and DAG Ventures.