MoneyWatch Tech

Google's New Ad Technologies Take Aim at Apple and Microsoft

By Erik Sherman

Updated on: March 9, 2010 / 2:59 PM EST / MoneyWatch

As my colleague Jim Edwards notes, Google (GOOG) has staked out a number of advertising-related technologies that suggest a lot about its strategies, including how it can compete with Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT), as well as new excursions that might raise privacy concerns.

According to a report from IP analysis firm Sunlight Research, in the last year, Google nailed down a number of advertising technology areas, including the following:

object and face recognition
video content advertising
content distribution for mobile devices
ad delivery based on phone use or behavior
delivery of "text message pages" on receipt of a text message
location-based advertising
ads in maps

The emphasis on delivering ads in many ways and forms, particularly in mobile and video, should surprise no one who watches the industry. Google has made no secret of its interest in both video and mobile advertising. Indeed, you could say that both YouTube and Android are nothing but manifestations of these revenue-driven desires. But some of the implications are eye-opening.

Take object- and face-recognition for advertising. At a basic level, Google could identify the subject of an image on a web page and then deliver an ad more likely to appeal to the reader's interest. But advanced object recognition could eventually allow Google to create a much bigger pool of personally-associated information than anyone currently dreams. For example, you could be as sparing as you want on revealing personal details on a web page of social networking site. However, many people are more careful about text information, which a Google can search, than with images. If a company can recognize faces and objects, it can start to associate people within a bigger context, amassing even more personally-identified data than before. Suddenly, Google might get a monopoly on a new way to build behavioral databases, further cementing its position in web-based advertising, to Microsoft's consternation.

Control over key aspects of mobile advertising technology could provide huge leverage when dealing with companies like Apple that might want to use phone technology patents to slow Google in the handset market. Advertising will be vital in the mobile space. If Apple -- or one of Apple's carrier partners like AT&T (T) -- want to get a slice of that pie, Steve Jobs might have to shove over to make room for Eric Schmidt at the table.