Can I Use A Drop Down Menu?

[finalvideoproduction]

I was wondering if it is ok to place ads in a drop down menu template?
So when you hover over the navigational links, they drop down covering the ads
I could not find any thing in the TOS on this
Thanks for you help in advance

[netmeg]

I don't think you can do that.

[fredw]

I don't believe there is anything specifically in the TOS which prohibits this. HOWEVER, it is generally accepted that if a drop down covers an ad when it is dropped down, that could result in false clicks on the ad that was covered, when the drop down disappears but the visitor was still trying to click on it.

It is always best to err on the side of safety, and not create a situation which could create false clicks on your site. I have drop downs on several of my sites, and even though the drop down is near the ad on the page, I have gone out of my way to create them in a way that they do not drop down directly over the ad.

(Stickymail me if you'd like to see how I did it on my sites...)

[BrandNewDay]

I was wondering if it is ok to place ads in a drop down menu template?

To me that sounds like drawing attention to the ads. So no, I think this is not allowed. What possible reason could one have to do this other than to draw attention to the ads?

[fredw]

I don't believe this is an "undue attention" situation. This is a "click misdirection" situation. Placing ads near a drop-down menu, if you do it wrong, means a user could click on an ad, having meant to click on the drop-down, which was there a second ago...

But if the ads and the drop down menus do not collide, and their proximity is not confusing, there should be no problem.

[Bddmed]

Here's a post on the Adsense blog about this:

Some implementations that could lead to accidental clicks include placing your ads:

- In close proximity to Macromedia Flash games
- Under pop-ups or download prompts
- Near site navigation controls on your pages, such as drop-downs or menu links

[adsense.blogspot.com...]

[frox]

> Elements on a page must not obscure any portion of the ads.

from the Adsense Program Policies
[google.com...]