Search giants meet on click-fraud guidelines

Search engines to define which clicks count and which don't

Tom Sanders in California

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has formed an industry-wide Click Measurement Working Group to meet the challenge of online advertising click fraud.

The group's representatives include Ask.com, Google, MSN Search and Yahoo!.

Advertisement

The group plans to form a detailed definition of a click, allowing for a standard way to determine click fraud. It will also provide recommendations on auditing and certification standards for parties in the performance-based marketing space.

Click fraud involves individuals using scripts or manually clicking on pay-per-click advertisements for financial gain.

A company could click on advertisements to deplete its competitor's marketing budget, for instance, and a website operator could be tempted to commit click fraud to increase revenues.

Search engines have repeatedly come under fire for they way they measure and determine click fraud. Yahoo! in June paid $5m and Google last week paid $90m. Both cases settled legal claims from online advertisers alleging that the search providers had provided insufficient protection to curb click fraud.

The new group is part of a broader Global Measurement Guidelines initiative by the IAB. Started in 2004, it seeks to define standards for online traffic. The group last March released guidelines for broadband measurement, determining when a broadband video commercial is counted.

  • Have your say
  • Send to a friend
  • Print
  • Digg
  • Reddit
  • Share

Tags:

Do you agree?

Related whitepapers

Related jobs

Most watched

Summit: Salesforce.com on SaaS and information overload

How web services contribute to data headaches

V3.co.uk weekly debrief, 13 Nov 09

This week we discuss the inaugural V3.co.uk Summit

Analysis and Reports

Remote access - Three steps to getting connected

3.4 million UK professionals now work from home – is your company equipped?

Cost benefits of a global collaboration network

This white paper is a must read for organisations looking for evidence of the bottom-line benefits of high-definition video and voice communications

Poll

Impact of Information Overload poll

Impact of Information Overload poll

What is the biggest problem your firm faces as a result of the data explosion?

View poll results

Advertisement

White paper library

Keep up to date with the latest products, services and technologies from the world's leading IT companies; IThound.com brings you over 6,000 white papers, case studies and analyst reports.

Advertisement

Newsletter signup

Sign up for our range of FREE newsletters:

Existing User

Newsletter user login:

Enter email address to edit your newsletter preferences

Job of the week

Search thousands of IT jobs :

Search thousands of IT jobs:

Advanced search

Hiring now on ComputingCareers:

Related IT jobs

Search thousands of IT jobs :

Search thousands of IT jobs:

Advanced search

Advertisement

Spotlight

V3.co.uk weekly debrief, 13 Nov 09

This week we discuss the inaugural V3.co.uk Summit

Fingers on keyboard

New Flash vulnerability discovered

Web sites could be vulnerable to Flash attacks

Chris Adams

Summit: Microsoft Office to the rescue

Chris Adams, Office Client product manager for Microsoft UK, explains...

Illegal downloader

Industry and human rights campaigners united in opposition to "three strikes" plan

Critics says government proposals to curb illegal downloading are unworkable...

Primary Navigation