EchoStar Communications and Google are collaborating on a new approach to TV advertising that upends the traditional model.

The two plan to introduce an automated system for buying, selling, delivering and measuring television ads on EchoStar’s Dish Network's 125 national satellite programming networks. The financial components of the deal were not revealed

Over the past few years, advertisers have shifted a significant percentage of their spending from television to the Web, for several reasons.

One is that advertisers can get better behavioral and demographic information on those responding to Web-based advertising. With that information, advertisers also have greater assurance that they are reaching the audience they are paying for.

Google has been at the forefront of developing and exploiting that model. Should its collaboration with EchoStar be a success, advertisers will certainly pressure other pay-TV providers to adopt the same or a similar approach.

Google will have access to a portion of Dish Network's advertising inventory that spans across all channels and time slots. EchoStar and Google are working together to provide automated online campaign planning, scheduling, delivery and measurement of ads on the Dish Network. In practice, it appears the two will auction ad slots.

"Our partnership with EchoStar is important for us as we begin to offer a TV advertising platform broadly," said Eric Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer, Google. "We think we can add value to this important medium by delivering more relevant ads to viewers, providing better accountability for advertisers and better monetize inventory for TV operators and programmers. EchoStar, with its focus on technological innovation and its dedication to improving [the] end user experience, is a great partner for us as we move forward to accomplish these goals."