Google plans Image Search display ads

Google plans to place display ads alongside their Image Search results as part of a suite of image-related experiments currently underway.

by Helen Leggatt

Currently, no advertising is served up when performing an image search on Google. The only other search engine to serve up ads alongside images search is Ask.com, which provides text ads at the top and bottom of the search results.

Internet users have moved on from using image search purely for looking at interesting images. Image searches are becoming popular among those searching for a multitude of products and information including recipes, gifts and travel destinations, said Google’s search product management director, R.J.Pittman.

The display ads will be displayed in similar locations to ads on regular searches.

No official launch date has yet been announced - some reports put it at sometime next year.