Is Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG)'s real goal with YouTube to monetize the video-sharing web site as more and more customers view video in addition to just viewing web sites? That's been the common perception ever since YouTube was acquired by Google last fall, but one thing you can't pass Google up for is its goal of making all the world's information searchable. With that said, is YouTube simply a tool to allow Google to possess the world's largest video database so that it can create future tools to allow future customers to search through that kind of material?

That notion would make the YouTube purchase quite an expensive tool in Google's toolbox. All things considered, the world's largest internet search engine didn't pay all that much for YouTube ($1.65 billion in stock) if it can leverage the extensive (and growing daily) database of video footage so that it can figure out how to make video content as searchable and relevant as simple web site links and relevant information are today for customers who perform Google searches at www.google.com.

Google is a master at trying to direct attention away from its true intentions, and in many cases, the market does not know what is going on even as the search king turns out this product and unveils that product. Its true intentions may not yet be known outside of the offices of Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Eric Schmidt, but I do stand by my assertion that the be-all-end-all game of Google's strategy is to become the world's largest advertiser by way of connecting the most relevant buyer with the most relevant seller -- for any product or service in any country at any price. Oh, and Google will take a small cut of each transaction, of course.

According to a story in The Guardian [registration required], Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) is testing ways of incorporating ads (and bringing in ad revenues) into YouTube videos. The head of Google's European operations, Patrick Walker, said that the company was testing the concept of offering people and companies that post videos half of the ad revenues, if they agree to allow a 30-second spot to run before the video.

He said the company is looking for solutions that don't ruin the viewer's experience. IMHO, thirty seconds isn't much to tolerate for a half-hour show, but might be a major hurdle for a two-minute clip.

Howard Lindzon of Wallstrip earlier this week told Variety much the same thing, but suggested the program could be rolled out as early as next week. Apparently, Google has been testing the concept on their Google Video site.

Walker went on to say that Google expects the YouTube ad stream to start bringing in "real money" in 2008. He also expects that more professional content producers will be eager to post their product once a shared revenue stream is in place. Spanish, German, and English television networks have recently agreed to create branded YouTube promotional channels.

Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG) dynamite first-quarter performance is a direct result of its ability to deliver the right advertising content to the right visitor. Now, Google is in the process of compiling demographics about its YouTube audience, groundwork that will allow Google to turn the user-developed content leader into a similar cash machine.

According to an article in Advertising Age, the CMO of YouTube, Suzie Reider, equates the YouTube visitor viewing habits to "a real-time focus group that happens every day." The results of YouTube's first in-depth viewer metrics are due this fall, whetting advertisers' appetites for the Christmas season. The information could lead to more than just ancillary ad placements; it could also inform content in the production of "advertainments," along the lines of Dove's Real Beauty campaign.

Reider also shared a couple of tidbits that should please Google investors. Despite acceding to Viacom's demand to pull its content from YouTube, traffic has continued to grow. That viewership is also growing increasingly international. 70% of its 45 million users are now from outside the U.S.

Google has also tripled the staff of YouTube since its purchase, which also speaks to its intention to aggressively protect and grow marketshare.