"The plan is to build a global digital ad network that uses offshore labor to create thousands of versions of ads. Then, using data about consumers and computer algorithms, the network will decide which advertising message to show at which moment to every person who turns on a computer, cellphone or — eventually — a television.

More simply put, the goal is to transform advertising from mass messages and 30-second commercials that people chat about around the water cooler into personalized messages for each potential customer. "  New York Times Article

Ad agencies and their customers are finally starting to "get" the digital world, something that the direct mailers knew all along.  Digital and direct are measurable and accountable whereas general media are less so.