One of the concerns lawmakers and regulators have about the (currently suspended) Google/Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) search ad pact is that it would make Yahoo’s search business a permanent also-ran to Google (NSDQ: GOOG). So a cynical mind might suppose that a post on Yahoo’s Search Blog about its forthcoming online and offline ad campaign is roughly meant to declare: “Our search platform is still viable despite Google’s dominance!” It could also be a response to other offline campaigns by IAC (NSDQ: IACI) for its search engine Ask.com, which hasn’t necessarily translated into a major usage by consumers. Still, even Google is considering its first major traditional ad campaign, so this sudden branding activity could be just another tactic by Yahoo to generate more users and deal with what’s expected to be a deeper ad slowdown. One of the display ads is fairly tongue-in-cheek, with the first frame showing a “lost child” who was “last seen searching Google.” In addition to display, the company will also run radio ads.

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