According to a PRNewswire press release Time Inc. Launched Time Axcess in April 2009 as an alternative to third party ad networks. This "gives marketers the best of both worlds: the comfort that their ads will only appear in the well-lit environments of TIme Inc. brands and the confidence that they'll get the reach, scale and sophisticated targeting to deliver their message to the right audience at the right time."
"Time Axcess reaches an online audience of 27 million of the consumers most valuable to marketers. These are the engaged, in-market shoppers with a collective purchasing power to move markets and influence others.
Time Axcess also provides insights, analytics and campaign optimization solutions.
Time Inc. is not the first to offer its own ad network. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia has Martha's Circle and Condé Nast debuted its own ad network a year ago.
Here is a short AdAge video on Martha's Circle.
What I like about Martha's Circle is that she takes independent web sites and blogs under her wing and places client ads on them. This extended network helps draw in content that is in keeping with the Martha brand, content being generated by smart, witty individuals...not publishing professionals. And for the blogger it seems to be quite a nice alternative to adsense because instead of leveraging your name with a search engine company you're now rubbing shoulders with a publishing brand that carries the respect of its legacy publications. A good example of how a big media publisher is leveraging the power of independent bloggers in what appears might be a win-win scenario.