They know not what they do

By building out their online video ad offerings, networks are becoming more hands-on with the ad creation process, reports MediaWeek.

Going beyond perpetually upgrading online players, networks are looking to hold advertisers' hands and help them shape ads that are optimized for each network's particular platform.

Turner Entertainment New Media, which sells ads across Turner's online properties, will soon launch a new division dubbed the Digital Promotions Group. The group's purpose will be to advise advertisers on ad distribution. It will also play a role in the ad's creation.

NBC is working on a similar effort. The network is helping clients find new ad executions that best exploit the new ad formats it recently introduced.

Meanwhile, ABC reworked its online delivery system to automate the process of inserting links.

The networks assert they are not trying to take the place of the creative agency in this process. Instead they're simply trying to help everyone realize the advantages of their proprietary online platforms.

At least one agency executive pointed out that if ad units were standardized, it would make everyone's life easier.