Friday, May 26, 2006

Video ads: Your questions answered

A couple of days ago, we launched click-to-play video ads. We thought we'd follow up with answers to some of your top questions:

Will video ads slow down my site? Do I have to pay for bandwidth?

Google will host the video, and it is user-initiated, so it will not slow down your site and you will not have to pay for the bandwidth. No data will be transferred until the user presses "Play."

Are video ads intrusive to my users?

Not at all. If a video ad appears on your site, it will always show up as a static image until a user clicks on the "Play" button. In other words, nothing plays automatically, and everything is user-initiated. Additionally, the video-ad UI allows users to control sound.

How will I be paid for video ads?

Video ads can be either site targeted or contextually targeted. Publishers will be paid for site-targeted video ads on a CPM basis. For contextually targeted video ads, publishers will be paid for clicks to the advertiser's landing page. Clicks are generated either by clicking on the display URL at the bottom of the ad, or by clicking on the video itself during play.

Will I earn more from video ads?

We can't guarantee the earnings potential of video ads (or any ad served through AdSense, for that matter). However, video, text, and image ads compete for placement on your site in the same ad auction. AdSense automatically shows the ads with the highest Ad Rank for each ad unit at that moment. For a video ad to display, its eCPM has to be greater than the projected eCPM of any combination of CPC ads competing to display in the same ad unit at that time.

Will the video ad be targeted to the content of my site?

If the video ads are contextually targeted to your site, then yes. Video
ads may also be site targeted, which means advertisers specifically select to show their video ads on your site because they feel the ad's message is highly relevant for your site's audience.

What is the duration of each video ad?

While the length may vary, video ads can be up to two minutes long.

Can I watch the videos appearing on my own site?

Yes, you can watch the videos appearing on your site by clicking on the "Play" button--this will not affect your reports. However, please do not click on the advertiser's URL, or on the ad itself, which will also bring you to the advertiser's site. Clicking on the ad or URL could generate invalid clicks on your account and inflate advertiser costs.

Do I get to preview video ads before they're displayed on my site to make sure there isn't any inappropriate content?

All video ads are screened against the Video Editorial Guidelines set by AdWords, so like all Google ads displayed through AdSense for content, they are family safe.

What do I need to do to get video ads on my pages?

Opt into image ads, within any of the following ad formats:

- 336 x 280 (Large rectangle)
- 300 x 250 (Medium rectangle)
- 250 x 250 (Square)

This sounds great! How can I get advertisers to site-target me so I can show video ads to my users?

Make sure to read this advice from Bismarck Lepe of the Google AdWords team. Also, the Help Center is a great resource for any further questions you might have.

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