April 26, 2005 1:48 PM PDT

Google tests out blog ad service

By Stefanie Olsen
Staff Writer, CNET News

Share
- Digg
- Del.icio.us
- Reddit
- Facebook
Email
Print

Related Stories: Firm eyes RSS feeds as ad vehicle
February 28, 2005; A long winding road out of beta
February 11, 2005; Ask Jeeves buys Bloglines
February 8, 2005; RSS feeds attract venture dollars
February 2, 2005

Google is floating a trial balloon of a service that pairs advertisements with blog feeds.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based search company is testing a new variation of its AdSense program for publishers that allows sites to display text or image ads related to their content and get paid by the click.

This week, Google spawned a version of AdSense that allows publishers to send a text or banner advertisement alongside syndicated content using Really Simple Syndication (RSS) or Atom, Google's adopted format.

RSS is an open standard for content syndication that's transforming the way people access news headlines and other information such as blogs online. Though it's one of the most promising emerging technologies, publishers have yet to find means of profiting from it. Advertising is widely thought to be the answer.

Companies including Kanoodle, Moreover Technologies and Yahoo are testing similar ad services for feeds.

Robert McLaws, publisher of a Microsoft-focused blog called Longhornblogs.com, is one of the first to experiment with the Google ads this week. He said the graphical ads, in his own customized bright blue, are being fed into roughly 61 feeds of his blog.

Though he couldn't provide many details, by Google's request, he said the ads are in hypertext mark-up language using images and links. He and Google's team are still testing how best and how often to present the ads, but McLaws said the company is likely to introduce a public beta in the next two weeks.

"It will be a change for the better, but I hope people don't go crazy," McLaws said. "Simple, relevant text link ads in RSS are one thing. Flashing banner ads like 'Shoot Mario to win an iPod' are another thing."

Google spokesman Barry Schnitt confirmed the test, but would not provide further details.

See more CNET content tagged:
Google AdSense, banner advertisement, Google Inc., publisher, RSS

Latest tech news headlines

In NFL deal, an extra point for Adobe's Flash
Posted in News - Digital Media by Jonathan Skillings

September 6, 2008 6:40 PM PDT
Chris Shipley 1, Internet lynch mob 0
Posted in Coop's Corner by Charles Cooper

September 6, 2008 5:51 PM PDT
At the TechCrunch50, an unfair advantage?
Posted in Webware by Rafe Needleman

September 6, 2008 4:33 PM PDT

RSS Feeds

Add headlines from CNET News to your homepage or feedreader.

More feeds available in our RSS feed index.

Inside CNET News

Scroll Left Scroll Right

News - Business Tech
Chrome's JavaScript challenge to Silverlight
The advent of Google's Chrome browser, software pros say, should spur a big speedup for JavaScript, which would raise its standing against Microsoft's Silverlight technology.
Gallery
Photos: Top 10 reviews of the week
Here are CNET Reviews' 10 favorite items from the past week, including the TiVo HD XL, Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H50, and the Dish Network's newest digital TV converter box.
News - Apple
Apple watchers spot 'iPod Nano' pix, iTunes hints
The rumor mill has long been predicting a longer, leaner new version of the iPod Nano, and now it's conjuring up some pictures.
Outside the Lines
EIC Squared: Chrome, iPods, and a Dell-Salesforce union
On this week's EIC Squared podcast CNET's Dan Farber and ZDNet's Larry Dignan discuss Google's latest rocket launch--the Chrome browser--as well as Apple's iPod event next week and a Dell-Salesforce.com union.
Video
Katie Couric reflects on first Webcast
The political conventions are over and so are CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric's first series of Webcasts. CNET's Kara Tsuboi sat down with Couric on the final night of the Republican National Convention to discuss what she liked about Webcasting, some of her most memorable guests, and whether TV news will still be around by the next round of conventions.
News - Digital Media
In NFL deal, an extra point for Adobe's Flash
Football fans will get to see live streaming of NBC's Sunday night games via Flash--not NBC's Olympic teammate, Silverlight.
Video
YouTube plays party politics
During the presidential campaigning four years ago, YouTube didn't even exist. Now it's a tool candidates must master to get their message across. CNET's Kara Tsuboi stops by the YouTube upload booths at the Democratic and Republican conventions to find out why Google's video site has such a big presence in Denver and St. Paul, Minn.
News - Gaming and Culture
Are Demo and TechCrunch50 fragmenting their audiences?
With both events scheduled to start Monday, many press, as well as venture capitalists and others are having to choose which one to attend.
News - Cutting Edge
Execs predict next Google-like tech
On eve of company's 10-year anniversary, researchers and business pundits speculate about what technologies might someday have as much impact as Google.
Gallery
Images: The art of 'Spore' prototypes
Will Wright and his Maxis team worked on dozens of prototypes to test the elements of their soon-to-be-released evolution game. Here's a sampling.
Webware
At the TechCrunch50, an unfair advantage?
Inside baseball: How Webware and other blogs can compete with TechCrunch in covering the TechCrunch50 event.
Green Tech
Duke Energy to invest in mini solar power plants
Can hundreds of rooftop solar panels collectively operate like a central power plant? Duke Energy launches $100 million distributed solar program to find out.