Digg.com, a user generated social news website, has axed Google as its ad provider, instead replacing them with rival Microsoft. The deal will see Microsoft providing the display and contextual ads on the site, with the changeover to start in August.

Founded in 2004, Digg.com has become a leading website for users to share and vote for the web’s most popular content. According to the Microsoft press release, Digg now receives over 17 million unique visitors every month.

From the press release:

“Our collaboration with Digg is about bringing our advertising technology and sales force to one of the fastest-growing sites on the Web and a true innovator in user-generated content,” said Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president of the Online Services Group at Microsoft. “We believe advertisers will welcome Microsoft and Digg’s combined strengths to forge more meaningful connections online.”

Digg founder, Kevin Rose posted a short blog about the change. His post assures us the changeover will not affect the user experience and will help digg to focus on new feature development:

“It’s important to say that we’re as focused as ever on a great user experience. So, no dancing monkey ads, and the design will remain uncluttered.”

This high profile deal is sure to ruffle a few feathers at Google. Let us know how you think they will respond!

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