Google Display Network – Why this innovation did not come from publishers themselves?

Just a few hours after we talked here on a potential outcome of giving all performance-based advertising to Google (or Microsoft), it was published what everyone knew, and it is the jump of Google into display advertising, what media considered to be their home.

The Doubleclick Ad Exchange: growing the display advertising pie for everyone.

What is key for us is not so much the response, logical, even awaited and welcomed but the problem diagnosis they make. In other words, it is not that important to look at what they did, but to why they did it (or, at least, how they explain it). These are not their words, but their statements (remember Popper?):

1. Google is successful in search advertising

2. There is also, out there (out of Google) a world of display advertising

3. But, that world is chaotic and unorganized, difficult to use so that, potential advertisers are pushed out

4. For publishers 80% ad-space is unsold

5. So that, Google can offer a better solution

It is very clear. Because no one else did coordinate a rational system for selling ad-space with standards (well, IAB has standards and they are widely known and used, but this is about selling standards and not merely format standards), we -Google- are going to do it.

Why this move is even wellcome? Because media know Google arguments are right, and it is a failure of media not to work together in the channel and compete in the content (again talking about it) Remember Gerd Leonard? Why this innovation did not come from publishers themselves?