RSS tool matches content to ads

Kanoodle, a search-advertising specialist, wants to help turn blogging into small business.

On Monday, the company introduced a self-service system that lets online publishers pair advertising with their RSS feeds. Called BrightAds RSS (after the technology format known as Really Simple Syndication), the service takes advantage of Kanoodle's keyword advertising system to match web content to relevant ads. Once a publisher signs up, an advertising link will piggyback on its syndicated feed sent to third-party news readers.

And with the help of Moreover Technologies, the service will offload a publisher's infrastructure demands of delivering RSS feeds to hundreds or thousands of readers. Moreover's technology will do the work.

Jim Pitkow, CEO of Moreover, said: "This is democratisation of content. The benefit is that small publishers now have a choice as to if and how they make money from their content."

RSS feeds are a key area of interest among major news outlets, investors and technology companies. The publishing standard has flourished, but many experimenting with the format have yet to figure out how to profit from it.

New York-based Kanoodle and Moreover, based in San Francisco, have been testing RSS advertising for more than six months, and according to Pitkow, the tests have been profitable. With BrightAds RSS, more publishers will be able to sign up for automatic advertising links. And the three companies will share in the fees collected from marketers each time people click on an ad.

Stefanie Olsen writes for CNET News.com.