Some developments could cut this fog. The May 2007 issue of Harvard Business Review, for example, put forward a new concept called big-seed marketing. It is the flip side of viral marketing. According to Duncan Watts, formerly with Columbia University and recently hired by Yahoo!, big seeding combines viral marketing with mass marketing. Whereas viral marketing is somewhat unpredictable and scales slowly, big seeding, according to Watts, means companies can rely on metrics for advertising a viral component, such as a video posted on YouTube. If a viral component is supported by non-viral, traditional ads, its distribution can be guaranteed to a certain extent. That would hit the strike zone of big agencies.

The other development to watch is a resurgence of TV based on integrated packages. TV networks and cable companies are getting smarter and more desperate about selling packages that tie TV into online, viral marketing and product placement. Coca-Cola on "American Idol" and Gatorade on ESPN are great examples.