Articles about Analytics

Users of Adobe's programs are taking issue with an apparent feature within the company's products that is sending out some type of data to an outside service.

Dan Moren of Uneasy Silence first posted about the apparent data sniffing on Wednesday night. Using a program for Mac OS called Little Snitch, he was able to discover Adobe's hidden practice.

Continue reading →

It's very clear now that one of Yahoo's principal goals in this latest reorganization, led by once-and-future CEO Jerry Yang and newly elevated President Susan Decker, is to distinguish itself from Google rather than catch up to it. Last week, those efforts culminated in executive reassignments to shore up its content business. This week, they resulted in the company acquiring British advertising firm BlueLithium, perhaps closing one of the most oft-noted gaps in its arsenal: a smart analytics tool.

Boasting of a higher overall audience reach than Google Search, AOL, MSN, or eBay by virtue of the sites it targets, BlueLithium positions itself as an advertising network in much the same way Right Media - last year's Yahoo acquisition - positioned itself as an advertising network.

Continue reading →

Microsoft has offered a glimpse of its upcoming competitor to Google Analytics, which currently goes by the code-name "Gatineau." The service promises to offer features beyond Google's and Beta 1 is expected to go live later this summer.

According to Ian Thomas, who works in Microsoft's Digital Advertising Solutions group, "Beta 1 will include the ability to segment data by both age and gender buckets, so you can get more of an idea of what kind of visitors you have." Thomas says the information is obtained anonymously through cookies, although privacy advocates will surely ask questions when Gatineau launches.

Continue reading →

Google Analytics, arguably the best free tool for webmasters and marketers to analyze site traffic and track campaigns, has received an overhaul just in time for the Emetrics Summit in San Francisco. The reporting interface has been redesigned for better customization and collaboration.

Businesses and Web site owners can now access and share custom reports, as well as create a "custom dashboard" containing the data they need most. In addition, users can choose different time periods to compare performance in real time, and send personalized reports over e-mail. Current Google Analytics accounts will be upgraded over the next few weeks, Google says.

Continue reading →

Google announced late Monday it will acquire Urchin Software, a developer of analytic solutions for Web sites. Urchin produces tools to track the performance of marketing, examine the user experience and optimize content. Google intends to offer the tools to Web site owners and marketers as an enticement to use its services.

"This technology will be a valuable addition to Google's suite of advertising and publishing products," said Jonathan Rosenberg, vice president of product management at Google. Google expects that the acquisition will close before the end of April. The terms of the sale were not disclosed.

Continue reading →