eBay Pulls Google AdWords Ads To Protest Google Checkout Moves by Greg Sterling at Search Engine Land describes the recently cat and mouse game between Google and eBay. Let me summarize quickly.
(1) eBay is to hold eBay Live Event in Boston today. (2) Google tries to crash eBay's party with a Google Checkout Freedom Party tonight near the eBay Live Event. Obviously, to persuade some PayPal users to switch from eBay to Google Checkout. (3) eBay pulls Google AdWords ads as "an experiment," eBay spokesman Hani Durzy told ComputerWorld.com. (4) Google cancels their Google Checkout Freedom Party, clearly due to the eBay situation. Google said," After speaking with officials at eBay, we at Google agreed that it was better for us not to feature this event during the eBay Live conference."
That is the story as it stands.
Now a search for buy baby now longer returns an eBay ad. eBay said they will be continuing their "experiment" even after Google cancelled their party. Yes, eBay had an ad for almost any search query on Google. That translated into huge dollars for Google. By the way, eBay ads are only pulled in the U.S.
There is a ton of coverage on this news and you can find a roundup at Techmeme.
A WebmasterWorld thread has feedback from Webmasters and Search Marketers.
Ogletree said:
I will be the first to say "Thank God". I am so sick of seeing the ebay ads. I wonder if they will just be replaced by affiliates.
Brent Tabke wonders:
More importantly, will eBay ban anyone mentioning g checkout on Ebay and will Google bury anyone that takes paypal? Film at eleven.
I cannot agree more with jcoronella:
The google protest party is in pretty bad taste. Very unlike them.. I wonder who actually approved it, and how long they will be in their position.
I think it is great to see this type of response from eBay. I think Google looked really bad afterwards. But in the long run, I think eBay is making a mistake by not officially accepting Google Checkout as a payment option on eBay. I know it is competitive, but these types of moves rarely work out in the long run.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld & DigitalPoint Forums.
