Google and Yahoo have proposed a revised version of their search advertising partnership to the U.S. Justice Department according to a Wall Street Journal article. The revised proposal limits the amount of revenue Yahoo can receive from the partnership to 25 percent of Yahoo’s search advertising revenue, shortens the length of the partnership to two years from a possible 10, and allows Google advertisers to opt out having their ads appear on Yahoo. The Wall Street Journal also reported that people familiar with discussions between the companies and the Justice Department told them that as of late last week a stalemate had been reached in the discussions.
Category: Google
Google Putting More Ads Above Search Results
Google will be changing the requirement for ads to show up above search results instead of to the right of search results according to a post on the Inside AdWords blog. Previously, Google only displayed ads above search results if the ad had a high enough Quality Score and it was the top ranked ad for that particular search. Ads will now be displayed above the search results if they have a high enough Quality Score; even if it is not the top ranked ad.
The post also announced that there would be an update to the portion of the Quality Score algorithm based on click-through rate, which according to Google is the “most significant component of Quality Score.” Because click-through rate is higher for ad in higher positions regardless of the quality of the ad Google factors in the position of the ad when determining that part of the Quality Score. The update will change how the position of the ad is factored into the click-through rate, which Google claims that the update “will result in more accurate Quality Scores.”
September U.S. Search Share Results
Nielsen Online yesterday released its rankings of U.S. search share for September. Overall search increased 9.4 percent year over year to 8.1 billion searches. Google had year over year growth of 20.8 percent and received 59.7 percent of searches. Yahoo! had a year over year increase of 1.5 percent and received 18.1 percent of searches. Microsoft had a year over year increase of 7.1 percent and received 11.8 percent of searches.
AdWords Separates Google and Search Partner Statistics
A post on the Inside AdWords blog announced that Google’s AdWords would start providing separate campaign performance statistics for advertising on Google and it’s search partners. Previously, statistics for search engines such as AOL, Ask.com, and others that display AdWords advertising with their search results were presented in performance reports combined with statistic from Google searches.
Google Releases Display Ad Builder for AdWords
A post on the Inside AdWords blog announced the release of tool for creating display ads for AdWords. The display ad builder combines user provided text, images, logo, and color selections into a flash based ad built on one of a selection of templates. The tool creates ads in variety of sizes to work with all ad placement types including video and games. Ad templates designed specifically for entertainment and media, financial services, local, retail, technology and travel are available. A number of interactive ad formats including a photo gallery, a product showcase, and a business locator are also available. The tool is currently only available for advertisers in the U.S. and Canada.
Automated Click Fraud Notification Tool Adds Google Reporting
Google Preparing Option for iPhone Targeted Search Ads
Google has presented the option of displaying different ads on searches from iPhones during meetings with advertising agencies according to an article by the Adweek. Google representatives told Adweek that the option was under consideration, but would not confirm it. The separate iPhone ad group could be added to standard search campaign. Google already offers option of running campaigns targeting phones that browse the Internet using WAP.
Google Brings AdSense to Online Games
A post on the Inside AdSense blog announced the beta release of AdSense for Games, an advertising program for online games. According to Google, the program will support displaying video ads, image ads, or text ads before a game, after a level change, or when a game is over. Google is selling ad placement directly to “top brand advertisers” and providing contextually targeted text and image ads based on content and demographic information. Advertisers who are part of the program so far include Sprint, Sony Pictures, and Esurance. The program is currently enrolling publishers who have a minimum of 500,000 game plays per day and have 80% of their traffic from the U.S. or the U.K.
Delay Announced for Google-Yahoo Partnership
Google and Yahoo have announced that they have delayed the implementation of their search advertising partnership according to a article by Advertising Age. The partnership was to begin in early October, but will now not start until the U.S. Justice Department has concluded its review of the deal. There is no set date for the Justice Department to finish its review. Advertising Age also reported Google and Justice Department employees have been having informal talks for the last week.
Google Blog Search Gets Google News Like Makeover
A post on the Official Google Blog announced a new look for the homepage of Google Blog Search. The old homepage consisted of a search box, while the new homepage has look similar to Google News. Stories and events receiving significant blog coverage will be displayed for 12 different categories, with blog posts about those topics clustered so that, according to Google, you can “see the best posts on a story or get a variety of perspectives.” The new look is only available in English now, but Google says that support for more languages and new features are coming in the next few months.