Clicking Confusion Rule Adsense Video Ads!

Hey they said we could click, how can that click be invalid?

[ken_b]

The other day Adsense announced video ads [webmasterworld.com], here's a little more info.

Click Carefully!

A new post on the official Adsense blog includes this little gem

Can I watch the videos appearing on my own site?

Yes, you can watch the videos appearing on your site by clicking on the "Play" button--this will not affect your reports. However, please do not click on the advertiser's URL, or on the ad itself, which will also bring you to the advertiser's site. Clicking on the ad or URL could generate invalid clicks on your account and inflate advertiser costs.

I can already see the posts saying "but, but, but.... I thought you could click the ads, how can that be an invalid click?

Well read carefully, we can only click the play button, hmmm does that include the stop play button? If you click the video ad itself, or the display url it COULD be an invalid click.

"Could be"? Could they be any less clear? Note they did not say that clicking the ad itself or the display url definitely is an invalid click, just that it "could be"! Yeah, I should hope so.

Is it true that confusion builds character?

CPM and PPC

Just to confuse matters a little more these ads will pay by CPM ...OR... PPC ... depending on whether the advertizer uses contextual targeting or site targeting, both of which are options.

Two Minutes?

Yup, these puppies can run "up to" two minutes.
That'd have to be a darn interesting ad.

[Hobbs]

donno ken, I wasn't confused until I read your post, now I will go read it again!

[TheDonster]

I emailed support since I clicked on the video the first time I saw it and then realized right after, DOH, that's a Google ad! Support confirmed you can play the video no problem. What you can't do is click THROUGH to the advertiser's site since this is where payment occurs. Also, the video ads can be eCPM or CPC depending on what the advertiser has configured.

[Scurramunga]

"Could be"? Could they be any less clear? Note they did not say that clicking the ad itself or the display url definitely is an invalid click..

I think it is just Googles way of phrasing, you just need to cut through it and interpret the underlying message. I have also noticed this in their email responses.

From what I have read the boundries are pretty clear