Over at MarketWatch, Bambi Francisco observes trends in the online advertising world and sees ‘accelerating change’ driven not by marketers but by the technology itself. Marketers will have to pedal faster to keep up.

Link: Net Sense: Creativity in online advertising lies in the math – Internet Services – Internet – Opinion.

At the Goldman Sachs Internet conference last week, an investor asked Google’s Schmidt how the company would defend itself from Microsoft’s new Internet Explorer, which many expect to include a bundled search toolbar. Schmidt appeared to brush the question aside, suggesting that the investor was assuming Microsoft would actually include a search toolbar.

Schmidt, who gave a keynote speech at the conference, also said that he’s focused on innovation. That response suggests to me that he may not be looking over his shoulder at Microsoft, even though Chairman Bill Gates is making it pretty clear that he’s aggressively pursuing the gold in the search game. "If anything touches search, we are going to do it," said Gates, as noted in a report by Sanford Bernstein.

Schmidt’s view reminds me of what typically happens during running or biking races. When you look ahead, you’re pretty much in control and confident. When you start looking over your shoulder to see who’s closing in on you, it’s a sign of fear. Perhaps Google’s not afraid. And, given its performance and its continued market share lead, it doesn’t have reason to be. Or, more likely, Google has no choice. After all, we may just be at the cusp of what will be a grueling clash between Internet titans.