Platform-A: brand new brand for AOL ad network

(FYI: Platform-A is the TOP advertising network by reach)

From an AOL press release posted April 24th: "AOL today revealed the logo for its Platform-A advertising division. Lynda Clarizio, President of Platform-A, said that the new logo “effectively communicates our distinct competitive advantage of scale and reach. And its bold and simple design fits with our mission of providing advertisers and publishers with effective, impactful and easy-to-use solutions to their digital advertising needs.” Complementary brand identities for companies owned by Platform-A will be rolled out in the coming weeks."

Well, that was nice. But the logo isn't. In fact, I'm not even sure about the name. Come to think of it, maybe the whole "AOL" thing isn't working out.

As Mike Vorhaus mentions in his piece, the Time Warner 10K filing reports that "AOL believes that the 'AOL' brand is associated in the minds of consumers with its dial-up Internet access service, and AOL is seeking to build a portfolio of other brands, such as MapQuest and TMZ.com, that have a strong and more updated consumer association. If the AOL brand continues to be used to identify the AOL dial-up internet access service as well as various web products and services, such as AOL.com, AOL Money & Finance and MyAOL, this could lead to consumer confusion and exacerbate the challenges AOL faces in attracting internet consumers to and engaging them on its web products and services."

Not to rag on AOL, but the whole "training wheels for the internet" image is very much ingrained. Instead of adding a new brand to a portfolio under a tired flagship brand, perhaps a complete overhaul is needed.

Labels: brand, business, logo

posted by Mark @ 10:35 PM