Google is negotiating with several unidentified UK papers seeking to help the search giant expand its print ad sales program, reports Editor & Publisher.

The expansion would grant Google a huge new audience. A debut outside the US, where Google has been selling print ads for months, would lend the program some much-needed validation.

One analyst calls it unlikely that a major print news player would consent to third-party ad sales without exploring other options first. But back in the States, where Yahoo launched its online print consortium, big players joined first and asked questions later.