Brands will be able to bid on custom Olympics ads in real time

Some of the world's biggest publishers are joining forces on a project aimed at delivering web surfers relevant ads with the speed of Usain Bolt during this summer's Olympics.

A group of nearly four-dozen well-known media brands including Condé Nast, ESPN and the New York Times (as well as Mashable) just announced a new advertising tool that will let each publication target personalized ads around particularly memorable moments during the games.

For instance, if Bolt were to set a world record in the 100-meter dash, Nike would be able to create an ad congratulating him and promoting his specially-designed track shoe to people who've expressed an interest in track and field.

The project, a joint effort with automated advertising network Rubicon Project, will consist of a shared set of advertising packages including desktop, mobile and video ads that brands can bid on in real-time.

Rubicon also conducted some market surveys to gauge interest in such a tool and found that nearly 70% of millennials and 60% of parents are likely to watch the Olympics streamed online. Furthermore, six out of 10 millennials surveyed planned to watch on a mobile device.

For Conde Nast, publisher of the New Yorker and Vogue among other titles, the package is the first of an ongoing series of targeted ad packages it plans to roll out for "key consumer moments."

The ads are not unlike a similar product launched by ESPN last month that let it customize online ads based on the team preference of a given visitor.

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