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Wearing thin

It would be surprising if Schmidt didn't arrive at the industry's most prestigious gathering armed with a few conciliatory words, but his message is heartfelt, sources close to the company insist. Chatter about Google’s most talked-about projects, including mapping the world’s streets and digitizing every book, can disguise the fact they are driven by commercial necessity rather than corporate altruism. Despite its status as an internet giant with annual revenues of just under $30bn (£18bn) and an 85% share of the search market, Google needs content creators in order to thrive.

Good content drives search, and search drives advertising. The more compelling the content there is online, the more money Google makes. In Schmidt's view, that makes Google and the TV industry potential partners and, in the right circumstances, natural collaborators.

The contents of Schmidt’s speech are a closely guarded secret. But a headline-grabbing initiative – perhaps a Google programming fund that production companies could bid for? – may help recalibrate the relationship between the IT nerds from Mountain View, California and the creatives from Soho and Salford.

Several years ago, that prospect would have seemed remote. Broadcasters watched with frustration as Google-owned YouTube generated traffic by allowing users to post clips from hit shows, while Google allowed others to find pirated material available elsewhere on the internet. Google’s retort to content providers who complained – that they should be grateful some of that traffic was being redirected to their own websites – was starting to wear thin.