Reinclusion requests can only be made by people using Google tools?

when did this start?

[Trisha]

According to the Inside AdSense blog post 'Be webmaster of your domain (or sub-domain)', point number 5: "Please keep in mind that the reinclusion request form is only available to people using Google webmaster tools."

When did that start? I don't remember hearing that before. So does that mean that unless you are using sitemaps or whatever else they have now you can't ask to be reincluded if suddenly your site falls out of Google?

Luckily, its not something I need to do now, but I guess I'll have to keep that in mind and make sure I'm using one of Google's tools then. Somehow that just doesn't seem right though.

[twebdonny]

JUST, FYI, Re-Inclusion Requests HAVE ZERO, Big NADA,
no effect on Penaltys Incurred and Until Google
gets some type of penalty removal request into operation,99.9% of those re-inclusion requests just
go into the crapper and are a total waste of your time.

[Trisha]

Yes, I kind of thought so. I did submit one once a long time ago and I don't think it made any difference at all.

Still, to only take reinclusion requests from people who use Google tools is interesting to me, I don't remember hearing that before.