Google is expanding its advertising clout and moves further to TV advertising as it reached a deal with NBC Universal. Said agreement will provide a small amount of advertising time on NBC Network Cable programs including MSNBC, CNBC, Sci Fi and Oxygen for Google to serve its TV Ads program. The said deal would also be extended to other NBC Universal properties later on. In addition, Google and NBC have also agreed to make the Google TV Ads platform tailored-fit for the local markets covered by NBC Cable.
Certainly this deal would expand Google’s TV Ads inventory which have never really grown since it started offering TV ads to clients not so long ago. Prior to this deal Google serves ads on Dish Network and a small cable provider based somewhere in Northern Carolina.
But of course, Google’s venture into TV advertising which is strengthened by this deal is not without strong competition. The TV advertising campaign is going up against top cable providers Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Cox which are formulating their own TV ad platform known as the Canoe Ventures.
Now, whether Google can go up against Canoe Ventures depends on how well it can target its TV ads to the appropriate geographic audience.
“The only way that Google is going to take any share on TV is if they can take advantage of data to provide targeted advertising that is not available today,” said Ross Sandler, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets, in a statement with the NYT.
And to do this Google would certainly need whatever data that it can get from Dish Cable Network and use this for their ad targeting campaigns. But the problem is, Dish only has 12% of the household market in the U.S.
Certainly, it’s going to be a tough road ahead for Google to realize the full potential of its TV Ads Platform. And this deal with NBC is certainly a one step forward towards the end of the road.
