Aggregate Knowledge Piques Consumer Demand for Discovery

November 7, 2007; 05:16 AM

SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aggregate Knowledge is providing a new way for companies to get their products and content discovered by consumers. Today, Aggregate Knowledge unveiled the Pique Discovery™ Network. The Pique Discovery Network by Aggregate Knowledge is a breakthrough approach to drive highly targeted and relevant content and product placements to consumers.

Aggregate Knowledge’s discovery network offerings allow companies to serve direct product and content placements to consumers on web sites, through email and in affiliate promotions. By looking at the collective traffic and purchase patterns from billions of anonymous data points, Aggregate Knowledge can place content based on real-time trends versus having to rely on demographic or profile based information. This allows companies to deliver their content based on what is happening on the web right now.

With every interaction with a company in the Pique Discovery Network, consumers see interesting products and content based on what is being collectively viewed and bought on the web. For example:

• A person reading an article about cooking can see related products that have been purchased by thousands of others who read that article.
• A consumer opening an email from their favorite fashion site can instantly see related product offers based on what is being bought and viewed on that site at that moment in time.
• A person visiting their favorite retail or media site can see related items based on what is being bought and viewed in real-time on that site.
• A person checking out a news site can see affiliate advertisements filled with actual products, based on what is being bought on the advertisers’ site.

Because placements and suggestions are based on real-time consumer trends, consumers literally lead each other to what is relevant and interesting across sites in the Pique Discovery Network.

“Discovery piques the curiosity of consumers to buy more, read more and find things they didn’t even know they were looking for,” said Paul Martino, Aggregate Knowledge CEO and founder. “We launched the Pique Discovery Network in response to consumer demand for an easier way to find relevant products and content on the Internet. Pique delivers content to consumers based on what is actually being read, viewed and bought on the web right now -- it doesn’t get any more relevant than that.”

Consumer demand for discovery is growing. More than 60 million people visit Pique Discovery Network sites to discover products and information every month. The Pique Discovery Network delivers approximately one billion discoveries per month. In less than one year, Aggregate Knowledge has grown its network to more than 100 retail and media sites.

Aggregate Knowledge is initially rolling out four offerings within the Pique Discovery Network:

• Pique Multi-Site™ Discovery: Places highly relevant product and content placements across multiple sites in the network
• Pique Onsite™ Discovery: Delivers in-context product and content suggestions on a single-site using that site’s content
• Pique Email™ Discovery: Automatically delivers dynamic content and product placements into emails, each time emails are opened
• Pique Affiliate™ Discovery: Delivers content and product placements directly into affiliate advertising, each time ads are served

Pique Discovery Network offerings drive transactions and engagement on some of the world’s most heavily trafficked web sites. Retailers can generate revenue by getting their products discovered across multiple network sites, on their own sites and through email and affiliate channels. Media companies can generate revenue with every click of a product placement on their sites. In addition, companies can drive more traffic to their sites by distributing their content through Pique Discovery Network sites, on their own sites and through email.

Companies participate in the Pique Discovery Network by installing a few lines of JavaScript™ code to their site to start collecting traffic data into the Pique Discovery Engine™. Anonymous data is collected in aggregate on what is being bought, viewed and read. This identifies the patterns and connections between the products, articles, blogs, videos, photos and items across the network. The Pique Discovery Engine then predicts and instantly places the right item, at the right time, in the right channel across the Pique Discovery Network.

“Finding relevant information continues to be a frustrating process,” said Sue Feldman, IDC's vice president for search and digital marketplace technologies. “And it will only get worse as more information moves online. Tools that can interpret queries and deliver more pertinent results are hot commodities today. Aggregate Knowledge, with its combination of rich user database and its data mining tools, fits this category nicely. It leads advertisers to highly targeted audiences while it improves search results for users.”

“Multi-channel discovery is a must-have for retailers looking to drive targeted product placements and customer ratings and reviews across their web sites, through their email, and in their online and offline advertising,” said Brett Hurt, Bazaarvoice founder and CEO. “The Pique Discovery Network by Aggregate Knowledge changes the game in how companies can target their merchandise based on what is being bought, read and viewed on the web. We are excited to partner with Aggregate Knowledge to deliver ratings, reviews and product placements through our customers’ multi-channel marketing and sales channels.”

More information on the Pique Discovery Network by Aggregate Knowledge can be found at www.aggregateknowledge.com.

Customer Comments:

“There is no better feeling than discovering a great bargain, and Aggregate Knowledge helps our customers lead other customers to the best bargains on our site and ultimately throughout their network,” said Mark McWeeny, vice president of marketing and corporate development at SmartBargains.com.

“Many people do not know what they are looking for when trying to find that perfect gift,” said Eric Lituchy, CEO and founder of gift basket and gourmet gift etailer, DelightfulDeliveries.com. “Aggregate Knowledge makes it easy for our shoppers to discover great gifts. Their Discovery Window provides a view into our shopping community and provides shoppers with highly relevant recommendations in the blink of an eye.”

“Vinfolio’s motto is 'fine wine, finer service',” said Rachel Blatt, vice president of marketing at Vinfolio. “By using Aggregate Knowledge’s Onsite Discovery™, we are able to follow through on the promise of 'finer service' by helping our customers discover wines most relevant to them.”

“Aggregate Knowledge helps us create a great buying experience by helping our collectors find bottles that are associated with what they know they want, and sometimes find those rare gems they didn’t even know existed,” said Andres Camacho, vice president of engineering at Vinfolio.

“Whether you’re into concerts, sports, or theater, it’s always great to get the perfect tip on the hottest upcoming shows and events, and that’s what Aggregate Knowledge does for our customers,” said Mark Hodes, senior vice president for TicketsNow.

“When people go to a health web site, they want to be treated like people, not patients,” said Scott Rothrock, chief technology officer at The HealthCentral Network. “Our readers want scientific, medical facts, but also want to learn about the personal experiences of others facing the same condition. With Aggregate Knowledge, we can recommend the most relevant articles, patient posts and information based on what people are actually doing on our site.”

”Before we started using Aggregate Knowledge Onsite Discovery, our sites achieved a three to five percent click-through rate,” said Scott Rothrock, chief technology officer at The HealthCentral Network. “Once we started using Aggregate Knowledge, that number jumped to about six percent.”

About Aggregate Knowledge

Aggregate Knowledge provides the Pique Discovery Network. The Pique Discovery Network connects consumers to the hottest products, hidden content gems and coolest items from industry leading retailers and media companies. Pique Discovery Network companies improve engagement and sales conversions, create new revenue opportunities and deliver differentiated experiences on their web sites. Aggregate Knowledge was recently acknowledged as an AlwaysOn Media 100 winner, a Supernova Connected Innovator and was selected as a “Ones to Watch” company by Dealmaker Media. Aggregate Knowledge is funded by premier venture capital firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, DAG Ventures and First Round Capital.

Aggregate Knowledge, the Aggregate Knowledge logo, Aggregate Knowledge Discovery, Pique, Pique Discovery Network, Pique Onsite, Pique Multi-Site, Pique Email, Pique Affiliate, Pique Discovery Engine and the Pique Discovery Window are trademarks of Aggregate Knowledge Corporation in the United States, other countries, or both. All other company, product, or service names may be trademarks or service marks of others. All statements regarding plans, directions and intent of Aggregate Knowledge are subject to change without notice.