Microsoft Advertising has launched a new premium ad network for Canadian marketers under the name DRIVEpm – Drive Performance Media.

In Canada, DRIVEpm reaches 60% of online consumers, about 14.2 million unique visitors across a network of premium Canadian and global Web sites (comScore Media Metrix, Advertising Networks, Total Audience, May 2008). The service aims to deliver supreme targeting, tracking, measurement and reporting technologies. Microsoft Advertising’s Bay Street office is also pushing the benefits of tapping its consultative teams for campaign optimization.

Jodi Kasten, director of sales for Microsoft Advertiser and Publisher Solutions Group, tells MiC advertisers buy on the network ‘blind,’ meaning they don’t rep specific sits but rather purchase premium media on the top 40 Canadian websites and the top 250 in the US. Those sites include destinations such as Facebook, Digg and Viacom properties. ‘The DRIVEpm difference is that we don’t purchase remnant inventory like other ad networks do,’ says Kasten. ‘Instead, our media team works with publishers to provide premium placements for our advertisers based on their needs and campaigns.’

Creative specs for the network include IAB placement sizes and Flash ads with a maximum of three animation loops and a length of 15 seconds. Some of the net’s targeting options include behavioural and re-messaging (email recipients, purchaser behaviour, loyalty marketing), demographics (geographic, inferred gender, categories), along with day parts, at home/at work, ISP/domain, and broad or narrowband.