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Viacom Jumps Into The Paid Search Listings Game with Yahoo!

Broadcast behemoth Viacom finally decided to address the internet's second most popular activity: Keyword Search. Many in the search engine optimization industry figured that Viacom would one day come crawling into the world of search once they began to see Google's revenues and had to start answering to shareholders and the board as to why their media covergance plans excluded keyword search marketing.

Yahoo search advertisers will now receive further exposure on the Viacom Internet network both in the sponsored and organic search results of the CBS-Viacom websites including: BET.com, CBSNews.com, CMT.com, MTV.com, NickJr.com, Showtime Online, and VH1.com.

The number of piad listings and keyword sponsors varies by Viacom property.

CBSNews.com will emulate Google and Yahoo by listing three sponsored search results advertisers at the top of their results page, and also run three more Yahoo sponsored keyword ads vertically in the right hand margin.

About Viacom

Viacom is a vast empire of broadcast mediums that greatly influences public opinion with ownership control in multiple forums of Network TV, Television production and distribution, Radio, Film, Publishing, Outdoor Billboards, Amusement Parks, and more.

It has been virtually impossible for any significant government intervention, FCC regulation or meaningful attempt to take up the media monopoly issue to date. Consumers are beginning to realize that nearly all American media outlets are now in the control of a small number of giant conglomerates.

Viacom's $40.6 billion purchase of CBS a couple years back still fails to make the merged company the largest media monopoly in America. That title is nearly a tie between Time Warner and Walt Disney, although most financial experts are claiming Disney the title holder, as the coffee stained, shred-marked, accounting records at AOL/Time Warner are still under SEC investigation and accurate final numbers for AOL/Time Warner have been impossible to decipher.

The merged CBS Viacom company became the largest operator of television and radio stations in the United States, combining Infinity Broadcasting and Group W, two of the biggest radio chains, both owned by CBS, with TV stations owned by CBS and Viacom's Paramount subsidiary. CBS Viacom was allowed to join forces and take sole control of TV stations in 18 of the 20 largest markets, own two TV stations in the same city in six of America's largest television markets, and now enjoys reach of 41 percent of the total national broadcasting market.

This 41% total market reach figure exceeds FCC audience reach limits, however, Viacom has simply issued petitions to the Federal Communications Commission to waive any existing regulations or restrictions that prevent one media company from owning multiple stations and reaching more than 35 percent of the entire broadcast market. The political action committee members, golf courses, and luxury resorts in the surburban Washington-Virginia-Maryland corridor had record bookings this summer in an apparent effort to help the FCC and the leading broadcast companies work out any differences they might have concerning the flexible media monolopy by-laws.

In further review of the extensive reach that CBS Viacom now singularly controls consider that when combining the highest-rated television network, CBS, with Paramount, the movie studio that produced the highest-grossing movie of all time, Titanic, and dozens of highly rated television programs, such as the comedy hit Frasier, the CBS Viacom merger also created perhaps the most powerful company in entertainment production and distribution. Viacom has ownership control of Spelling Productions (another large television production house) and well as Viacom Productions.

Viacom was already the largest operator in the cable TV broadcasting industry prior to the acquistion of CBS. Viacom owns popular cable properties that include: MTV, Nickelodeon, Showtime, VH-1, Comedy Central, and now through the CBS merger picked up the TNN country network. CBS Viacom is the largest American owner of outdoor billboards, owns Blockbuster Video, the naion's largest video-rental chain, book publisher Simon & Schuster, and now also owns five leading amusement parks.

Wait Viacom owns much more:

Viacom owns 50 percent of the UPN, America's sixth most popular TV network, but according to the latest FCC resort stays, Viacom might have to sell UPN in order to maintain ownership control of all of their other media properties. A most fascinating aside is that Viacom also is involved in the boat manufacturing and sales distribution business now as they share ownership of the UPN network with boat-maker Chris Craft Industries. This could explain the rumors that have been flying all summer that key FCC and government players in the broadcast regulation circles have recently discovered the thrills of boat ownership.

Sources say merger mania that tore through the broadcast industry for most of the late 80's and 90's has further complicated the broadcast monopoly picture. Consider that both Viacom and CBS were already involved in a most complex series of rush mergers, hostile takeovers, and backdoor broadcast acquisitions during the last 15 years or so. It was during this time-frame that the US media and publishing industries ownership shifted into the hands of less than a half dozen giant media corporations.

Many media consultants are now pondering if keyword search is the next target of the media elite. stay tuned as keyword search the most effective form of Internet Advertising continues to draw attention...