Microsoft ditches adCenter Analytics

US-- Microsoft is to pull the plug on its adCenter Analytics service.

The service, which never progressed beyond its beta incarnation, will be shut down on December 31 and existing users are being advised to export their data to avoid losing it. No new beta participants will be admitted to the service.

Targeted at small and medium-sized businesses, the service was Microsoft's answer to Google Analytics. The company claimed that the service would improve customer reach, boost conversion rates and increase return on advertising spend.

Microsoft's adCenter community manager Mel Carson put out a communication to users through the official adCenter blog yesterday, saying: “You've helped us work towards making an informed decision about building a general web analytics solution, and despite the end of life plan, the beta was very much a success. It enabled us to confidently determine that we can be of most value to advertisers and publishers by offering a tailored solution that meets more specialised needs.”

However, there is no word on a replacement service. At the end of his blog post Carson points users, without endorsement, towards competitive offerings from Google, Yahoo, Coremetrics, Foviance and Intellitracker among others – fuelling speculation that Microsoft has no plans for a swift re-entry into the ad analytics market.

The adCenter Analytics beta was based on technology Microsoft acquired in its purchase of Canadian web analytics firm DeepMetrix

Author: Marc Brenner