Google will charge advertisers only for ads that are seen online
GOOGLE will allow advertisers to pay only for adverts that are actually seen online in changes made yesterday.
The move comes as part of Google’s drive to boost advertiser’s ability to get better value from the company’s advertising platform.
“As we’ve said before, making viewability a basis for buying, selling and measuring media can help transform the digital marketplace,” said Google’s group product manager James Beser yesterday.
The new buying option will allow advertisers to pick ad spots on websites that meet viewability standards. Google defines this as a minimum of 50 per cent of the ad being visible on the screen for at least one second.
“Offering improved insights, transparency and actionability, viewability is key for brand advertisers to get the most out of the web,” said Beser.
The change will reduce the value of adverts that are seen not seen by humans and advert spots on websites that are not regularly seen as they appear near the bottom of the page.
Google’s advertising business accounts for 32.8 per cent of the estimated $117.6bn (£71.9bn) global digital advertising market spend in 2013 according to eMarketer, which translates to around $38bn annually.