Yahoo Addresses Quality, Click Fraud

Monday, October 8th, 2007 by Janet Thaeler

Yahoo Addresses Quality, Click Fraud

Yahoo paid search is adding some new features for advertisers. In a few weeks they will launch Blocked Domains. Like Google AdWords, you’ll be able to block specific domains that you do not want your ads to appear on. You will be able to block up to 250 domains per account. That includes blocking an entire domain, a subdomain or a directory in a particular domain.

You’ll also be able to block by continent. By default your ads will only show in North America. You can change the default in the administration.

Yahoo is also launching discounts for quality advertisements.
It’s a twist on Google’s quality score. Rather than rewarding advertisers whose ads are clicked on and offer higher quality, you get an automatic discount if your ads generate quality traffic. So those of you who don’t think search engines should have a say in what kind of ad you write, this seems to be the trend. You will be either rewarded or penalized.

Click fraud is always a concern for advertisers. Yahoo is implementing a system to identify the fraud and advertisers will not be billed for those clicks.
Last year researcher Ben Edelman found that Yahoo’s network was rife with “spyware” and “adware” programs. They place ads on behalf of Yahoo advertisers, charge them for clicks on the ads, then split the revenue with their partners. It seems late but hopefully this begins to address the issue.

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6 comments on “Yahoo Addresses Quality, Click Fraud”

CPA Affiliates Says:

October 8th, 2007 at 11:06 pm

Yes i have even gotten a few calls from YSM of them trying to clean up their act. and even have gotten some nice refunds due to bad quality /forgeign traffic.
Mr GrownUP Geek Says:

October 8th, 2007 at 11:22 pm

As a publisher, I stopped using Yahoo Publisher Network long ago.. Their inability to deliver a contextually targeted ad two times in a row makes them useless as a way to generate revenue on a website.
If Yahoo would concentrate on quality I think they might be a threat to Google.. Until then, I don’t see anyone at Google losing any sleep..
Steven Bradley Says:

October 9th, 2007 at 4:06 am

I’m curious how Yahoo can tell if an ad drives quality traffic. Wouldn’t it be the site owner that has to define the quality of the traffic.
root123 Says:

October 9th, 2007 at 4:22 am

Seems Yahoo really doing some good works for its advertisers.
ScottUA Says:

October 9th, 2007 at 9:10 am

Definitely a good move. Glad to hear that Yahoo is addressing a major problem with advertising on their PPC system.
Daniel Says:

July 5th, 2008 at 7:00 am

Great Website!!!

Marketing Pilgrim