A twist on competing ads

Something I came accross today

[KenS]

Normally I vent my frustration here about the blatant breaches of TOS that I come across (which incidentally are getting worse), but today I came across something that made me smile.

Without checking the actual words, I know there is something in the TOS about not placing Adsense on pages that already contain non Google but lookalike context adverts. It would seem rather a contradiction therefore (although not a TOS breach) that I came across an Adsense banner that was promoting a company that, as far as I can tell, is offering an Adsense program clone. Even the ad layout is almost identical and very difficult to distinguish from Adsense.

Google is therefore promoting direct competitors! It's like writing "buy a Ford" on the side of a Chevy.

:-)

[gpilling]

Its almost like they will take anyones money!

[Alioc]

A competitor should be able to compete. Google has even allowed MSN ads so they wouldn't even care about the "micro" companies. Well, until they start becoming a serious thread. But even then, it's still not like the example you gave. A little but important difference:
"Ford pays money to advertise on Chevy and everybody knows they do so." Who gets the prestige? :)

[Hobbs]

I have seen YPN ads within my site's Adsense, they can do it, you can't.

[valley]

At the same time, it may also promote the strenght in the product and reflect the confidence and solid base of the Adsense business model.
Competition is paramount and not a bad thing, in fact it is beneficial to all 'good' businesses.
If you can't compete, hiding under the covers is not going to save you.
There again, here it may be just a case of over rated self confidence.

[pompousjohn]

I assume most of us have worked at actual jobs in a company that has both customers and employees.

For Google, we are the employees, the advertisers are the customers.

Customers can always get away with stuff employees can't, and when there's a disagreement between the two employees lose 99 out of 100 times.

Almost every company out here would rather give the boot to a good employee than to a bad customer, Google is no exception.

[Hobbs]

>>For Google, we are the employees, the advertisers are the customers

Na, don't see it that way, actually we are the shop ownwers, and Google is the sales man with all the connections to bring in customers (advertisers), we're the factory they are the agent that pockets a percentage .. you get the point..