The search giant Google has enforced a block on adverts that promote "adult explicit content" from its advertising network across it's search engine and other sites.
Some conservative lobby groups in the U.S., including Morality in Media, have claimed credit for the move by putting pressure on Google to stop running ads for adult related websites.
Google that announced the changes in March, sent the notices to advertisers in June via email. The new policy went into effect on Monday June 30th, 2014.
In a June press release, Morality in Media traced the policy change to "a productive meeting" it had with Google in May. In both 2013 and 2014, the activist group had named Google to its "Dirty Dozen List" of companies that are responsible for the spread of adult materials and exploitation. The group called on supporters to distribute flyers, sign petitions, and contact company executives to complain.
After their victory against the search giant, the group is urging their supporters to sign a thank-you card to send it to Google. "We are grateful that they are realizing that their profits from porn are not worth the devastation to children and families," the group said.
While adult explicit contents are banned from AdWords under the new rules, adverts for other adult entertainment including strip clubs and dating sites are still permitted. This means that Google isn't banning adult advertising in general, it's greatly tightening the definition of what it will allow on AdWords.
In 2013, Google banned adult-related blogs from making money via its ads for adult websites through its company-owned Blogger network. Google's SafeSearch feature has long filtered explicit results from being displayed in searches..
AdWords that was first released in October 2000, is Google's advertising platform that places ads on Google sites as well as third-party websites. Google made $13.8 billion in ads revenue in the last quarter, accounts for around 90 percent of the search company's total revenue.
The warning emails says:
"When we make this change, Google will disapprove all ads and sites that are identified as being in violation of our revised policy. Our system identified your account as potentially affected by this policy change. We ask that you make any necessary changes to your ads and sites to comply so that your campaigns can continue to run."
When Google was asked whether the push from those conservative groups influenced the company's decision, Google had no comment.
Some advertisers in the porn industry said that they felt betrayed by the company, while some others said that they were caught off-guard.
"I was one of the very first advertisers for AdWords back in 2002," said CEO of AVN Media. "It's something that's been [untouched] for 12 years, so you don't expect change is going to start happening."
The industry's attorney added: "This is another example of a mainstream company turning its back on the industry that has supported it. The question now becomes: Will they block adult content from their search results?
By banning the industry from advertising on it, Google can have a significant decrease in revenue. For an industry as exploitative as that, search-results question is a provocative one. Google may no longer be taking money from these advertisers through its AdWords program, but Google is still sending them a lot of traffic.
This because adult websites on the internet accounts to more 37 percent, in which delivers more than 30 percent of the total internet traffic. And the amount of data transferred is astronomical because while most websites are just plain text and images, adult related sites are mostly streaming videos (more online time - exposing them to more pages and more ads).
Over the years, though, Google has acknowledged that some types of sites, particularly those involving inherently illegal activity like child pornography, don't deserve a place in its rankings. It's also now being compelled to censor certain pages and news stories about people claiming protection under the European Union's new "right to be forgotten" law.
Google is known as a company with massive influence. With that power, activists and governments are giving more and more pressure. It's a reminder that not being evil (Google's slogan) isn't as simple as it sounds.
A company spokesperson said that Google updates its policies on a regular basis and has strict guidelines covering sexually explicit content. You may refer to Google's advertising policies regarding this type of contents here.