Google Enters the World of Television

Google is taking advertising to new levels by partnering up with popular television icons and inventors.

Soon Google's AdSense network will feature online videos from Seth MacFarlane, the creator of the animated TV show "Family Guy," as well as Raven Symone, who stars in the show "That's So Raven." The company supporting the projects, Media Rights Capital, financed last year's Brad Pitt flick, "Babel."

It sounds entertaining, but if you fear change then these ads might not impress you. What's more, if you were hoping to spend time on Google with the Griffins, think again. MacFarlane will feature new characters in his short videos. And, don't get too excited for Raven's crazy antics. Instead of complicating the lives of the characters around her, Raven will guide viewers in how-to shows.

Google plans to bundle the programs with banner ads and in-stream video advertising. This way, users will have to click in order to view the content. The philosophy behind this setup: advertisements will invite potential customers, rather than intrude upon them. If users can control how much advertising they are exposed to, marketers will become more familiar with ads that do and do not work. Kim Malone, a Google executive says, "This combination allows for the creation of original content that was historically too expensive to produce for Internet distribution and connects advertisers with high-quality content." (Source: Internetnews.com)

This new idea is Google's attempt to try to reach everyone. For this reason, AdSense is the chosen distributor because it will allow the videos to reach a broader audience. Also, Google's trust in AdSense may be due to its credentials. AdSense already has experience with this form of distribution since it signed a similar distribution deal last year with Viacom's MTV Networks.

In the words of a Media Rights Capital co-chief executive, "We feel this partnership answers the question of how best to reach viewers online, because the Web is fragmented into millions and millions of viewing destinations." (Source: forbes.com)