Google is hoping to bring its ad tracking technology from the web to televisions, potentially changing the future of the ad business.
The tech giant is starting a trial of its new service in Kansas City, tracking the ad views of every house with a Google Fiber box. Google Fiber is the company’s division that provides Internet and television to various locales around the country. It first became available in 2012 in Kansas City, and has since expanded to other cities. Bigger cities, including Atlanta, are set to become Google Fiber markets soon.
From a Google Fiber blog post:
Fiber TV ads will be digitally delivered in real time and can be matched based on geography, the type of program being shown (eg, sports or news), or viewing history. You can opt out of seeing ads that are based on viewing history from the Fiber TV settings.
If you’re a local business in Kansas City, just as with digital ads, you’ll only pay for ads that have been shown, and can limit the number of times an ad is shown to a given TV.
If the trial proves successful, it could mean huge changes for the advertising business. Instead of aiming for broad demographics by placing ads on TV shows that demographic is likely to watch, local businesses could target the exact television viewers who are most likely to respond to their ads.
