I haven't really read much about BuzzMetrics or Intelliseek, but it doesn't surprise me that GM, P&G and the like are becoming more interested in monitoring blogs, people who blog, topics mentioned on blogs, yadda yadda. Quantifying is the first step in shaping/controlling/making a buck off of whatever new media is created.
Blog Tracking Services Agree to Join Forces - New York Times
Two services that track the readership of blogs and other forms of consumer-generated media for clients like General Motors, Microsoft and Procter & Gamble are joining forces.
BuzzMetrics in New York, partly owned by VNU, is acquiring Intelliseek in Cincinnati for undisclosed terms. The combined company will be 50.1 percent owned by VNU, which also owns companies like Nielsen Media Research, and will operate under the Nielsen BuzzMetrics name with offices in Cincinnati and New York.Jonathan Carson, chief executive at BuzzMetrics, will continue in that post at Nielsen BuzzMetrics. Mike Nazzaro, president and chief executive at Intelliseek, will be president and chief operating officer at Nielsen BuzzMetrics. The acquisition was announced after a consortium of investment firms made an $8.9 billion buyout offer for VNU.
BuzzMetrics says this about themselves:
BuzzMetrics transforms the incredible mass of consumer word of mouth into actionable research findings and strategic plans — giving you precision-guided tools to help meet your business and brand goals.For years it’s been clear that person-to-person opinion sharing impacts consumer behavior more dramatically than either editorial or advertising. But word of mouth has historically remained a fuzzy medium – difficult for businesses to reliably capture or deploy.
With millions of people now flocking online to share their experiences, everything has changed. The conversations people have – on message boards, listservs, blogs and chat rooms – represent the largest collection of consumer insight that has ever existed. And because these conversations happen online, where they are recorded and archived, we can help you listen in and participate.
Tags: Advertising, /surveillance, /Technology
