il lays out exactly what they need to do, so there isn't much else to suggest. Simply set up some ad placements on the site and get set up as a publisher with the ad network of their choice. The network does all the sales. (Edit: Later on, they can get into do their own direct sales, sponsorships, etc.) They actually were signed up as a publisher for an ad network for a while, I think, because I remember some ad taking over the screen and everyone freaking out. Maybe that scared them away from the idea because they couldn't control the ad types, I don't know.
I don't know what their mobile numbers are, but they need to get set up as a publisher with a mobile ad network too, such as Ad Mob, Millennial or Quattro.
And since they don't know how anything works, they need to get a few thousand dollars and hire a consultant to explain it all to them. I know they are sensitive about pissing off users, but I suspect that their conversations with Conde Nast and any ad network have ended up in frustrated conversations that go nowhere because they don't understand each other. They need a marketing consultant that understands both worlds to bridge the communication gap. Yes, I'm available.