Broadcasters Should Embrace Online Advertising, Says Google Boss

Broadcasters should embrace online advertising rather than concern themselves with the perceived threat of it overshadowing the traditional ad model, according to Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.

During a keynote speech at the broadcast technology exhibition NAB in Las Vegas, Schmidt said: “Don’t bet against the internet… find a solution that connects your content with this medium. This is as big a possible land grab in terms of revenue as that of TV in the 40s and 50s.”

The Google boss conceded that the internet advertising model is still in its infancy, saying that the traditional 30-second advertisement came out of 15 years of trial and error and direct advertising will go through a similar process of evolution.

“Google won’t replace traditional radio and broadcast advertising but can supplement its success,” he said. “Revenues are largely flat in broadcasting and Google’s technology will increase these.”

Google recently acquired digital marketing technologist DoubleClick for US$3.1 billion to help it monetise content on Google-owned user-generated content site YouTube, which it bought late last year (see Google Buys YouTube).

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