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Total entries in this category: Published On: May 18, 2008 10:34 PM |
ACCC stops buyer of sponsored links from GoogleThe
Trading
Post publishes classified
advertising in print and on-line.
Stickybeak
provides classified advertising for businesses in the Hunter
Valley.
The Trading Post, apparently, bought one of those sponsored links on Google so that, when someone did a search of Stickybeak on Google, a link to the Trading Post's autotrader website would appear .... "adjacent to" the search results. (The
ACCC's press release also refers to the sponsored link being "under" the term
"Stickybeak".)
Stickybeak complained to the ACCC. The ACCC wrote to The Trading Post. While denying liability, The Trading Post has agreed: "to stop using competitors' names and trademarks in sponsored links on the internet, although it did not admit that its conduct was misleading under the Act." It is rather hard to assess what was potentially misleading about this without being able to see how the results were being presented. Usually, when one does a Google search, the "sponsored links" are clearly indicated to the side so that, one might have thought, most people would realise they were paid advertising. Gee, they even have "Sponsored Links" headed above them. Nonetheless, the Chairman of the ACCC warned: "The ACCC believed the Trading Post's conduct may have contravened sections 52 and 53(d) of the Trade Practices Act. Section 52 prohibits misleading or deceptive conduct and section 53(d) provides that a company must not represent that it has a sponsorship, approval or affiliation it does not have." Two things here then: First, the ACCC is taking an increased interest in these matters. Secondly, note the width of the undertaking The Trading Post gave. You can find the ACCC's press release here. Posted: Tuesday - 21 June, 2005 at 12:53 PM | |