If you're reading this, it may appear a bit confusing. But that's how it is when you're dealing with Google.
Only last week, Jennifer Slegg of JenSense.com posted the revelation that web publishers have to adhere to Google's updated policies...
As I had mentioned in my previous post, the key issue concerning the placements of ads became a sore point among a lot of publishers as noted in their comments in various blogs.
That was bad news.
Now Jennifer has come back to us, posting on her blog, that this time "It's official! You can now run AdSense on the same page as other contextual ad programs."
In other words, third-party contextual ads may now be displayed on the same site or page as Google ads but with one condition..."as long as they don't have the same look and feel as our ads."
She had a nice chat with Brian Axe, senior product manager on the Google AdSense Team on the issue. And thus, this new revelation.
I'm not sure what to call this new revelation. Is it an about-turn, a turnaround or a flip-flop? But never mind.
That is good news.
But there are still certain kinks to be ironed out. Like Yahoo Publisher Network (YPN)...they stated in their TOC that other contextual ads (that means Google AdSense) are not permitted on the same page as YPN ads. Hopefully, this will be history, too.
Now you have to sit down and figure out how to differentiate all these competitive ads in design, colour, font, positioning and format in order to comply with the new program policies.
Guess it boils down to using good judgement and plain old common sense.
Of related interest:
Privacy Policy for Adsense Publishers
Things are getting a bit dicey again where the Adsense program is concerned. The Google Adsense policies have been "revamped" in easier to understand lingo. But still some of the nuances in the policies are facing contention among Adsense users.One key issue that's nagging website publishers is the placement of Adsense contextualized ads. Google are saying that similar contextualized ads from other advertisers should not be entertained on the same website if publishers are using the Adsense program.
This may well stick in the craw for publishers who have been using both Adsense and other contextualized ads. Some publishers knowing how sticky Google can be regarding their TOS oblige by using Adsense on web pages minus contextualized ads from other advertisers. But they place these other ads on some other pages without the Adsense ads.Now, it seems it's a no-go to do that. Already, we're hearing rumblings from some publishers regarding this issue. For more about the Google TOS updates, JenSense.com has got the skinny on them.
Of related interests:
Now You Can't Google With Other Ads...
Privacy Policy For Adsense Publishers
If you have been watching the Internet marketing scene like a good watchdog, you would notice that lately contextual ads are no longer a monopoly held by Google.
Although Google are still way ahead of the competition, website publishers should start noticing that there's a growing list of new players coming on or planning to hit the contextual ads arena sooner or later.
We already have Yahoo! Publisher Network (YPN), Kontera and Chitika and some other smaller players in the field. Next, watch eBay and Microsoft as they work on their betas.
IntelliTXT, with their unique brand of contextual ads that appear in a "video balloon," have caught the eye. Pioneered by Vibrant Media, IntelliTXT launched in 2004.
How would this affect website publishers? My take is that there'll be more choices (obviously) and just in case you get banned by Google, you still have somewhere to go. Oh, what a thought!
