Media Companies vs. Ad Agencies: Data, Value Chain

Some good insight from AdAge, AMA, and Booz and Co. on the battle between media companies and ad agencies. http://adage.com/video/article?article_id=132255

The highlights:

• Media companies own a lot more data than they used to and are using these data to sell themselves
• Media companies enjoy proprietary networks that they can instantiate with data and customer tracking
• Agencies are having trouble adding the right staff in critical digital areas--database analytics, web analytics, and other CRM components
• Agencies are clearly feeling the heat from media companies and it'll be interesting to see how they respond.
• The value chain is shifting: Example given is Meredith (a women's media network with magazines like Better Homes and Gardens, Family Circle, and Parents) which has started to turn itself into an agency. They are the agency of record for Kraft's best in class CRM effort.
• Check out Meredith 360 which is their solution for integrated marketing. Their goal is clearly to own an audience everywhere, and eventually to own the data around that audience as well.
• If there are any other examples of media companies that are adding agency services I'd love to hear about them. We know Google is going here, but I'm also curious as to why Yahoo! hasn't tried to leverage its strength in finance or sports to try to own these audiences somewhere other than online.