Times Investment in Equities- Unfair?

I wanted to write something on my own on this, then googled to find this - http://readerlist.freeflux.net/blog/archive/2005/12/06/reader-list-the-press-distrust-of-india.html

I think the greatest benefit of google is that you rarely have to reinvent the wheel these days, whether its a document you yourself created (desktop) or some one else created (general search). There is so much time and cost saving.

Would google do something like Times? Offer ad space in return for equity? Would it be a fair way to do it? Google goes out of its way to ensure that the search results are genuine, similarly I think that BCCL should ensure that the news it reports are fair and stop making investments in companies in return for ad space. I think SEBI should take this up seriously and consider banning such investments in the future.
Madhu