Ad-funded Software

I've had two meetings recently with companies that are experimenting with ad-funded software from either end of the spectrum.

The first was with Spiceworks , a company that has developed an IT management package for SMBs that is ad funded. It seems like a great idea. By the sounds of it they have a good piece of software with a loyal and growing user base who have significant influence on IT purchasing. (If anyone has used the product I'd love to hear their views on it). The software is browser-based and the advertising can be served through third-party ad servers. They don't yet have a great deal of European usership but I'm keen to try them out at some point.

At the other end of the spectrum is Microsoft. They're now selling advertising on their Office Help pages . Office is not going to be entirely ad-funded in the near future but it is an interesting development. Steve Ballmer was extremely pro-advertising when he was in London in October.

MS Office help is not, currently, as compelling a place to advertise as Spiceworks. There are better environments to advertise in and the audience is not as refined and specific as Spiceworks. It does make me wonder how long it will be before other non-media brands monetise their web traffic through advertising. E-commerce is the new in-store.