Google News searches to show advertisements

Google is looking at additional avenues to increase revenue. It has now extended its AdWords program to Google News searches, delivering text ads on the right side of the search results page, just as Google has long done with regular Web search results.

Josh Cohen, a business product manager at Google, announced the move Wednesday in a company blog: ''In recent months we've been experimenting with a variety of different formats, like overlay ads on embedded videos from partners like the AP. We've always said that we'd unveil these changes when we could offer a good experience for our users, publishers and advertisers alike, and we'll continue to look at ways to deliver ads that are relevant for users and good for publishers, too.''

The ads, which officially debuted Thursday, work as AdWords usually do, serving up pages related to the search terms (rather than news results from specific publications). Cohen described the results as "similar to what you see on regular Google searches or Google Book Search."

As the situation for print-news publishing has deteriorated over the past few years, some publishers looked to Google as, perhaps, a saviour or at least a partner in ads sales. That was the Print Ads program, which Google flushed after two years. That announcement, made on 21 January, was followed by the announcement in mid-February that Google is also stopping its Audio Ads sales program for radio-spot placement. (See: After closing down Print Ads, Google exits Audio Ads programme / Google cancels print ad programme )

Many observers pointed out that traditional publishers, some of whom are only recently coming around to the prospect of Google News excerpting their stuff, are likely to oppose the idea of the search giant making ad sales in proximity to their content.

Faced with a much tougher economy, Google is working harder to make money off more of its properties. In recent months, it's begun showing ads in Google Earth and Google Finance as well.