After months of speculation, Google has officially jumped into the television business. The Web giant announced on Monday that it is partnering with EchoStar Communications to sell commercials over the Dish satellite broadcaster's 125 national programming networks, an early indicator of how the Internet giant plans to use its $10.6 billion online-ad business to conquer television. Under the EchoStar deal, advertisers will use Google's AdWords automated auction interface to bid on ad spots. Advertisers can upload their TV commercials and select the desired time of day and channel, as well as choose regional or national area coverage. They can also target the ad based on a show's demographics, such as males 18 to 34 years old, said Keval Desai, director of product management for Google TV Ads.

In a related move, Google also confirmed that it has been testing a similar advertising effort with Astound Broadband, a small cable TV operator east of San Francisco that serves about 23,000 subscribers.