MisterWebNet

It seems Google won't be the first to have an operating system (OS) with advertising running on it. Microsoft has got in ahead of Google, opening up Windows 7 to desktop advertising in a trial that will go on until October 2010.

Last month Microsoft announced a slimmed down version of Office 2010 Starter Edition that would be supported by advertising and would only be accessible on pre-loaded PC's.

Advertising and desktops are set to become the new mass market in a few years. Consider turning on your TV. You are literally forced to watch ad-breaks. Okay, we know you can channel hop to avoid them but how many of us avoid adverts alltogether on TV? Desktop advertising is set to become the same. It will be highly difficult to avoid advertising running on your desktop if that's what you signed up for.

Microsoft has already struck deals with Porsche, Pepsi and Twentieth Century Fox for it's desktop advertising programme. For users, the advertising should be unobtrusive. But then, what advertiser wants it's hard spent dollars to be easily ignored by you?