I wrote on my blog of the impending
layoffs at MetaReward. A few days later
ClickZ confirmed the rumor and reported the number laid off at 50. In my DMConfi piece about Experian's decision, I went with the party line that the incentive business did not fit the current goals of the company and that the incentive space was too competitive, too faced pace for MetaReward to continue to excel.
Hagai brought up an interesting point. Why didn't Experian try to find a buyer for the business. Claria has decided to exit adware, but rather than simply shed their existing userbase, they have looked for suitors. They will probably get $20mm to $30 for the asset which includes only users and no technology. Experian conceivable could have done the same - hired a firm to handle the sale while they go about business as normal. But, they didn't. They not only closed down incentive marketing, they have discontinued the MetaReward brand.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that the incentive volume has decreased. The scary part is that it makes up a significant percentage of many networks' offers. Imagine if ringtones didn't exist.
With Experian dropping Meta the way it did, does that suggest the company has reason to believe that the incentive promotion channel has a limited future? It's safe to say that most people know the product isn't really free. It's also a reasonable assumption that those going through the process for a big offer provide less value for the end-advertiser. I think the guys at Gratis have a good idea with Freepay. They have become more explicit and active in connecting consumers with marketers. The notion of incentive marketing makes sense and shouldn't go away. Users get marketed to all the time. It makes sense to build a platform by which they can get rewarded for their participation, i.e. receive a percentage of the marketing dollars that go towards acquiring them. The hard part is finding that balance between gimmick (the offer) and the process and really focusing on the platform.
Despite Meta's pullout, we know the Coke vs. Pepsi ads will continue. Whether the current incentive promotion is the best way to monetize users' willingness to voice their opinion remains to be seen.
