Brand advertisers are mad at Google, and they may not be willing to take it anymore, according to a story in The Wall Street Journal.

At issue is a practice known as "piggybacking," whereby smaller advertisers use major brand names, slogans or other trademarked words in the text of search ads to draw traffic to their sites. Google and other search engines have long had policies against the practice, but advertisers say that little is being done to enforce those rules.

According to many advertisers, the widespread abuse raises the cost of doing business and confuses customers.

But more troubling for Google are rumblings from brands that the time may soon come to make a stand.

Last August, American Airlines did just that when it filed suit against Google, accusing the search engine of trademark infringement. But a legal challenge may not be the most immediate fallout from the growing piggybacking controversy.

Michael Menis, VP of global marketing services at InterContinental, said Google's inability to clamp down on piggybacking would likely influence his brand's spending decisions. While most brands don't really have much of an alternative when it comes to search -- Google virtually controls that market -- sectors such as video and display are relatively wide open.

If brand advertisers decide to punish Google in the display and video categories, it could be a tough blow to the search giant, which recently put display in its crosshairs by completing its DoubleClick acquisition and announced that it was making YouTube's monetization strategy a top priority. Such a fight also could provide a much needed opening for Microsoft, which has been probing Google on all fronts as it looks to redefine itself as an interactive advertising leader.