Adsense TOS Contradiction?

Are you in compliance with both?

[fredw]

Another thread on this forum pointed out an item in the Adsense TOS that surprised me, because I had never seen it stated that way. So, I went to the Adsense web site to double-check it.

In the official Google AdSense(TM) Online Standard Terms and Conditions page that is linked to at the bottom of every Adsense site page, it says, in item 2 under "General":

You agree not to display on the same Web page in connection with which any Ad Unit, Ad, Link, Search Box, or Referral Button is displayed (a "Serviced Page") any advertisement(s) that an end user of Your Site(s) would reasonably confuse with a Google advertisement or otherwise associate with Google.

HOWEVER, on the Google AdSense Program Policies page that is linked to in the lower right-hand corner of the Adsense help page, under "Adsense Resources", it says, under "Competitive Ads and Services":

We do not permit Google ads or search boxes accessing Google search services to be published on web pages that also contain what could be considered competing ads or services. ... This would also include ads throughout the site that mimic Google ads or otherwise appear to be associated with Google on your site.

Do you see the contradiction? In the official Terms and Conditions it says "You agree not to display on the same Web page" and in the Program Policies page it says "This would also include ads throughout the site".

My sites are in compliance with the broader of the two wordings, but only having read the first version, I was surprised by a version of the TOS I *thought* I understood.

Is everyone else aware of this restriction?

[shogun_ro]

I understand this:
If you have adsense in one page you can not have Yahoo ads for example in that page.And if you have adsense in one page and yahoo in another you can not mimic that yahoo ads are from Google.

[Pengi]

As I read it, there are two separate requirements here:

1) "We do not permit Google ads or search boxes accessing Google search services to be published on web pages that also contain what could be considered competing ads or services."

and

2) Nowhere on the site can you include Ads that mimic Google ads or otherwise appear to be associated with Google.

The site issue is about mimicing Google

[Sunshine1]

This is related to my post yesterday asking if site=domainname?

[webmasterworld.com...]

It is actually the reason for my post, I want to test some creative ad formats.

If you do some experimentation on a distant, but related "site". Can you be penalized?

[sailorjwd]

Oh crp.

I've got many internal links on my site that have short text descriptions under them.. is this mimicing?

[sonny]

I've got many internal links on my site that have short text descriptions under them.. is this mimicing?

Do they say "ads by sailorjwd"?

[europeforvisitors]

I've got many internal links on my site that have short text descriptions under them.. is this mimicing?

Yes, if they look like AdSense ads.

No, if they don't.

[fredw]

Pengi: read them again.

Yes, the second page mentions "mimic" but the first page includes "any advertisement(s) that an end user of Your Site(s) would reasonably confuse with a Google advertisement or otherwise associate with Google".

Isn't that the same thing?

[Pengi]

I still don't think these are contradictory - they may overlap.

The Google TOC requirement say that on a "serviced page" (i.e. a page with AdSense on it) you can't show a "competing ad" of an ad that a user could resonably think was a google ad. Doesn't say such an ad cannot appear elsewhere on your site.

The Program Polices requirement then adds that you cannot use the Google Search facilities on pages if the site contains ads that may be misinterpreted as Google ads.

I think that is you have ads that are made to look like Google Ads but are actually someone else's ads then these should not appear on any page with a google product, and should not appear in response to a Google search of the site. If either of these is not the case then you are probably in breach of the TOS.

Is it worth getting G to check you are OK?

[Sunshine1]

Should not appear on any **site** with a Google product.

But what about Google image ads? They look pretty much like any other image. Does not make sense of Google to prohibit that as well.

[Pengi]

Looking like any image - an image must be OK (IMHO)

Making anoother Ad look like a google Ad or Googel Image Ad is a no no.

This is about protecting Google's brand image. Don't abuse it or mislead - no problem.

[Sunshine1]

Some of the new Yahoo ads are the same form as Google Ads, I was pussled first time I saw them. Size, pixels, colour, frame and all they basically look the very same - guess its safe to assume they are allowed since there has been no major issues that I know of with that?
So it should be assumed that we are talking about ads that are EVEN MORE similar than the new Yahoo network ads, not?
Basically that means the ad almost has to look EXCACTLY like a Google ad with the "Ads By Google" or "Ads By Goooooogle" right there on the ad pretty much.

[trannack]

This all seems pretty straight foreward to me. Don't try to deceive by mimicking or creating misleading competition with Google.

If in any doubt - send Google an email asking them to visit a page that you are concerned may be in breach of TOS. We can all speculate as to the exact interpretation of the TOS - but at the end of the day surely it is better to get your answer from the horses mouth - or perhaps the AWA/ASA would like to clarify this situation.

It is my understanding from this forum - and viewing other sites, that many people breach TOS and seem to get away with it. However - if your site gets reported, or Google have a new way of automatically reviewing sites, you could be in for the chop. Just not worth the risk IMHO.