Dominique Vidal

As regional vice-president and managing director, Dominique Vidal, oversees all aspects of Yahoo!'s operations in 12 European countries.

Yahoo! is a leading global Internet brand and one of the most trafficked Internet destinations worldwide. They provides online products and services for the online community as well as a full range of tools and marketing solutions for businesses to connect with internet users around the world.

Dominique was previously group managing director for Kelkoo, Europe's leading shopping comparison service, where he was instrumental in growing market share and extending the business into 10 European territories in less than five years. He also forged partnerships with major Internet players like MSN in Europe. Yahoo acquired Kelkoo! Inc in March 2004.

Dominique has also worked as a partner in charge of IT and telecoms at venture capitalist firm, Banexi Ventures, and at Schlumberger in marketing and business development roles in France and the USA.

He graduated with an engineering degree from Supelec in 1988.

Synopsis

High speed broadband access is accelerating the growth of internet user numbers and the amount of time individuals spend online.

Online advertising spend has already overtaken some traditional channels. Increasingly brands recognise the internet can play a key role in marketing campaigns. Their customers are now more engaged with the internet than they are with some traditional advertising mediums.

However there's still a gap between the amount of time audiences spend online compared to other media and the investment brands are making in the internet. Dom will argue that the next phase of internet development will see a significant closure of this "time online vs ad spend" gap. Especially with the launch of the new internet products that will engage users and build communities in a way that hasn't previously been possible.

To utilise its true potential companies need to understand how the internet allows companies to target and interact with consumers in ways that other media simply cannot provide – it's so much more than a large audience. Search marketing for instance provides a unique route to communicate with customers already looking for specific products.

Dom Vidal is uniquely placed to comment on the changes in consumer behaviour brought about by the continued evolution of the internet and offer companies an insight into how to benefit from those trends. As CEO at Yahoo! Europe, he is focused on delivering the products internet users want and creating opportunities for advertisers to communicate with those consumers in new and engaging ways.