Ginny Marvin says, “To fight malicious activity in the programmatic advertising ecosystem, the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is aiming to create a master blacklist of IP addresses associated with driving fraudulent bot-generated ad requests from data centers. In the new pilot, Google’s database of data center IP addresses will lay the foundation for the blacklist. Other ad tech leaders partnering in the effort — Facebook, Yahoo, Dstillery, MediaMath, Quantcaast, Rubicon Project and TubeMogul — will add to it with their own blacklists and internal data. “Industry leaders... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “Google has notified AdSense publishers that they must get “cookie consent” from site visitors from countries within the European Union to use their data. The change essentially affects any publisher running AdSense, not just those operating in or serving the European Union. Google says the new user consent policy is in reaction to requests by European Union data protection authorities. “It has always been Google’s policy to comply with privacy laws, so we’ve agreed to make certain changes affecting our own products and partners using Google products,” Jason... [...]

Greg Finn says, “It was just under two years ago when the injection of Google+ into YouTube comments caused quite a controversy. This change required the use of a Google+ account to participate in conversations on Google products. A new announcement today is decentralizing Google+ for Google users and focusing back on a standard Google account. This move to force Google+ on users was widely criticized as a method to boost overall network numbers. The original argument for the integration was that it made life easier and more convenient for users. Welp, Google has now changed their mind: People... [...]

Patrick Kulp says, “It’s an all-too-familiar experience on the mobile web: Click on a site and an ad overtakes your screen to ask you if you wouldn’t rather stop reading and download the site’s app instead. Does anyone ever want to do that? Obviously not, as common sense tells us, but Google needed proof. It found it: seven out of ten people in a just-released Google internal survey said the extra step to get to the site is cause enough to abandon the webpage altogether. “This [ad] has been described as the ‘door slam’,” said Jennifer Gove, who works... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “Ad Age is reporting that Google has pulled several apps from the Play Store after the release of a report on in-app ad fraud on Thursday. The report highlighted the migration of the ongoing battle in display advertising to the apps ecosystem. Published by ad monitoring firm Forensiq, the study described several ways the company observed malicious apps defrauding advertisers and draining users’ smartphone data plans and batteries. Chief among the tactics seen was apps running constantly in the background, endlessly serving ads in high volume throughout the day. Forensiq estimated... [...]

Greg Sterling says, “After search marketing reports that showed slowing growth for Google, the market was anticipating a miss or very modest growth. However Google just announced earnings and profits that beat analyst expectations. Total revenues were $17.7 billion; earnings per share were $6.74. The company said it had roughly $70 billion in cash and cash equivalents on hand. Google shares jumped in after-hours trading Revenue growth was 11 percent year over year. But paid clicks were up 18 percent and a whopping 30 percent on Google websites. However CPCs were down 11 percent. The... [...]

Gregory Ferenstein says, “When it comes to optimizing traffic to your website, plenty of reports would have you believe that social media is the only field worth plowing. But a new Adobe study shows that Google searches remain a dominant force—so much so, that even small tweaks to its algorithm can cause immediate and significant changes in Web traffic. The company has a history of intentionally punishing or rewarding websites, based on whether they align with its vision or not. Most recently, it decided to lower rankings for websites that weren’t mobile-optimized, such as those displaying... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “The Google buy button in search ads is officially rolling out in an experimental phase, the company announced Wednesday. The new feature is called Purchases on Google and actually isn’t a button at all. The new feature was rumored about since last year, and Google confirmed last monththat the new feature would be coming soon. Purchases on Google is being tested publicly with just a handful of high-volume retailers. “Buy On Google” messaging will appear in eligible product listing ads on Android and iOS devices. The goal is to make it easier for users to transact... [...]

Pratik Dholakiya says, “Actionable metrics are like oxygen for your decision-making. The decisions you make obviously have a direct impact on your business. Google Analytics has been the staple stats feeder for a gazillion marketers and business owners over the years. But does it actually give you all the data you need? In fact, do you even realize the different types and sources of data that are available to you and whether you have uses and applications for all of them? Let’s take a closer look. Real-Time Web Analytics Google Analytics already provides you with real-time analytics built... [...]

Graham Charlton says, “Google algorithm updates are a fact of life for brands and search specialists.  With so many Google updates over the course of a year, we have a periodic collective outburst of stress around these changes. However, the effects of these changes are generally much more subtle and are not the cataclysmic events some fear. Google’s mobile-friendly update was one such example. There was talk of ‘mobilegeddon’ (and yes, we used that term) but the reality was that Google was simply implementing changes to its algorithm that it had talked about and hinted... [...]