Blogads is an online ad network

Advertising network

An online advertising network or ad network is a company that connects advertisers to web sites that want to host advertisements. The key function of an ad network is aggregation of ad space supply from publishers and matching it with advertiser demand...

 based in Carrboro, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

 that provides advertising services to both blog

Blog

A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...

gers and advertisers. Blogads was founded in August 2002 by parent company Pressflex LLC and its CEO Henry Copeland.

History

After its founding in August 2002, Blogads pursued clients within the burgeoning political blog scene in the run-up to the 2004 Presidential Elections

United States presidential election, 2004

The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...

 and assembled a network of over 500 bloggers, including many influential political bloggers. Despite questions as to whether or not blog advertising, and Blogads' model specifically, could withstand a drop in readership after the elections, blog advertising, and Blogads with it, has flourished, particularly with an influx in money from the 2008 election cycle

United States presidential election, 2008

The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...

.
During the time period between the presidential election cycles, Blogads used its increased market influence to attract bloggers from outside the political realm to include blogs about video games, sports, food, beauty, and celebrities. Blogads also provides ad services to video bloggers, as YouTube

YouTube

YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 and video podcast

Video podcast

Video podcast is a term used for the online delivery of video on demand video clip content via Atom or RSS enclosures...

ing encourage a rise in the movement.

Blogads Model

Blogads administers a network of bloggers that elect to make advertising space available on their sites. These blogs are placed into categories based on their content. Blogads points advertisers towards these targeted networks, while also providing detailed market analysis and advice.

Acceptance into Blogads as bloggers requires an invitation from a blogger currently selling advertising space with Blogads, and a viable amount of web traffic to ensure sufficient revenue. Advertising does not require an invitation.

Blogads Network

Blogads provides advertising to many high-traffic blogs, including Daily Kos

Daily Kos

Daily Kos is an American political blog that publishes news and opinions from a progressive point of view. It functions as a discussion forum and group blog for a variety of netroots activists, whose efforts are primarily directed toward influencing and strengthening the Democratic Party...

, Perez Hilton, Cute Overload

Cute Overload

Cute Overload is a weblog featuring commentary, photos and videos related to various aspects of cuteness in animals. The site was created by Megan Frost...

, Wonkette

Wonkette

Wonkette is a left-leaning American online magazine of topical satire and political gossip, established in 2004 by Gawker Media and founding editor Ana Marie Cox, and edited by Ken Layne from 2006 to 2011...

, Dlisted

Dlisted

Dlisted is a celebrity gossip blog written by Michael K. The site originally started on January 23, 2005 as the D-List, but changed its name to Dlisted due to copyright issues with Kathy Griffin's: My Life on the D-List, a Bravo reality series following comedian Kathy Griffin.Michael K, a...

, Go Fug Yourself

Go Fug Yourself

- Creators :The authors and owners of the blog are Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks, who met when they were working as recappers for the website Television Without Pity, then known as Mighty Big TV...

, Atrios

Atrios

Duncan Bowen Black , better known by his pseudonym Atrios , is an American liberal blogger living in Philadelphia. His weblog Eschaton is one of the most popular political weblogs, receiving an average of over 100,000 hits every day...

, Talking Points Memo

Talking Points Memo

Talking Points Memo is a web-based political journalism organization created and run by Josh Marshall, journalist and historian covering issues from a "politically left perspective,". It debuted on November 12, 2000...

, Americablog

Americablog

AMERICAblog is a liberal American blog founded by John Aravosis in April 2004, with several co-bloggers. The blog helped expose Jeff Gannon in 2005, and in 2006 helped make cell phone privacy an issue by obtaining Gen. Wesley Clark's call records. The blog focuses on U.S...

, Crooks and Liars

Crooks and Liars

Crooks and Liars is an American liberal blog founded by John Amato. Along with John Amato, frequent contributors include Nicole Belle, Logan Murphy, Mike Finnigan, David Neiwert, SilentPatriot, , Susie Madrak, Nonny Mouse, Kenneth Quinnell, and Howie Klein. Journalist Tina Dupuy is the managing...

, Firedoglake

Jane Hamsher

Jane Hamsher is a US film producer, author, and blogger best known as the author of Killer Instinct, a memoir about co-producing the 1994 movie Natural Born Killers with Don Murphy and others, and as the founder and publisher of the politically progressive blog FireDogLake...

, Political Wire

Political Wire

Political Wire is a political blog based in the United States. It was founded in 1999 and published by Taegan D. Goddard , a former policy adviser to a U.S...

, and Outside the Beltway

James Joyner

James Joyner is best known as the founder and editor-in-chief of the weblog Outside The Beltway and a frequent contributor to TCS Daily .-Career:...

.

As the Blogads Networks groups similar blogs and encourages existing clients to reach out to other like-minded bloggers, some networks have grown to prominence supported by Blogads-based ad revenue.
Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas has stated that "Blogads has been perhaps the single most important component to the rise of the liberal blogosphere."