• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, December 3, 2008

Search giant Google continues to expand offline into the TV industry, announcing another big advertising agreement with a television network. In case you didn’t get the headline reference, it’s with Hallmark Channel. The deal, which follows a similar Google agreement with NBC Universal’s cable networks, will enable advertisers and agencies to buy TV advertising inventory directly via the Google TV Ads platform to place ads on both Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel. The system works a lot like Google’s AdWords platform, except that advertisers can use it to plan, target and buy TV spots instead of search ads.

The system also brings TV buys closer to the accountability of online search, delivering digital reporting within 24 hours. Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel join Google TV Ads’ growing list of inventory partners, which also includes six networks from the NBC Universal familyâ€"Sci Fi, Oxygen, MSNBC, CNBC, Sleuth, and Chillerâ€"along with Bloomberg Television and 96 networks through DISH Network.