Bad news for agencies that make annoying or bothersome ads with news Google is set to update its Chrome browser software that blocks ads its deems as unsuitable or annoying for mobile or desktops.
The new version of Chrome is due out in early 2018 and will reportedly come with pre-installed technology that will block ads that don’t comply with the Better Ads Standard. That’s a set of rules Google says “clear, public, data-driven guidance”.
The new initiatives are also a way for Google to circumvent the rise of third-party ad blocking software that has entered the market over the past couple of years.
According to a report on US industry site AdWeek, Google will launch a tool known as the Ad Experience Report so advertisers will know what they can and can’t get away with. The tool will show publishers screen shots and videos of everything the new software identifies as annoying and provide a list of ads a publisher can use instead.
In a recent blog post, Google’s SVP, ads and commerce, Sridhar Ramaswamy, wrote of the new functions: “The vast majority of online content creators fund their work with advertising, which means they want the ads that run on their sites to be compelling, useful and engaging ones that people actually want to see and interact with.
“But the reality is, it’s far too common that people encounter annoying, intrusive ads on the web – like the kind that blare music unexpectedly, or force you to wait 10 seconds before you can see the content on the page.”
