Dive Brief: 

• Search giant Google confirmed Wednesday that it is testing out the use of banner ads that appear with certain search results. 
• The company vowed in a corporate blog in 2005 that "There will be no banner ads on the Google homepage or web search results pages. There will not be crazy, flashy, graphical doodads flying and popping up all over the Google site. Ever."
• The decision is part of Google's multiyear evolution to display more images. E-commerce ads have been gradually displaying more images, for example. 

Dive Insight: 

This is the perfect example of why a brand should "never say never." Especially in the digital world, it is impossible to predict what direction you might be taking a couple years down the road. A strong statement like the one written in the Google blog will haunt you indefinitely if you have to change your tactics down the road. At first, the banner ads, if rolled out to the general public, may cause some backlash—but as with most changes, the long term affects will be slight.