Dive summary: 

• Q4 2012 data from Evidon and anaylzed by kbs+ Ventures shows that ad networks are being edged out by other marketing technologies including demand side platforms (DSPs), trading desks, and social plug-ins in the retail industry. 
• The use of DSPs by retail firms was up 44% in 2012 from 2011 while use of ad networks was down 51%. 
• Every retail organization included in the analysis had at least one social media plug-in comparied to just 45% who had one in 2011. 

From the article: 

"Kbs+ Ventures analyzed 20 retail brands including Best Buy, Old Navy, Gilt, Piperlime, Gap, Disney, Target, Walmart, and Newegg. Of these retail sites, 75% used Google AdWords as an ad network, while 50% used Burst Media. However, there were 51% fewer advertising networks utilized overall by these retailers during the holiday season. Other popular ad networks included Acerno, Netseer, and 24/7 Media."