Barry Schwartz at SEL explains the details of a new (to the US) program in which Google is featuring sponsored company logos on Google Maps. This is persistent and not contingent on search queries (vs Google local ads).
Note the HSBC logo below:
The program is CPM based and not tied to AdWords. The presentation is pretty unobtrusive. Consumers with brand loyalty will welcome this for obvious reasons.
It will also be available on Google Maps for Android and the iPhone. (Eventually I believe Apple will replace Google Maps with its own solution; we’ll see.)
Yahoo a long time ago had a similar program that displayed selected advertiser/brand locations on the map. Mapquest offers this today as well (though on a limited basis):
