[LINK] Re: World's first, ACCC initiates Google legal proceedings

[Stewart Carter]

Dear Linkers,

A couple of points I've published today (and previously) about the 
ACCC vs Google and The Trading Post.
(and some that Alan Kohler also makes in his piece)

1, Many, many Google Adwords advertisers are bidding on brands, 
because they are popular keywords.

2, Google's automated submission process means that its publish 
first, and fix only afterwards.
Yahoo's vetting first process rules out the same problem there.

3, Getting action from Google is difficult because the complaints 
process is facilitated via the US site
and, last time I looked, specifically in terms of breaches of US law.

4, The Trading Post claims to have dumped the ad agency that was 
doing this for them quite some time
back so why is the ACCC picking on them. Why not choose some of the 
many current examples?

5, This is nowhere near the first time that search engines including 
Google have faced actions over sponsored links.
So I wonder why the ACCC thinks it has any chance at all of having 
sponsored links declared illegal.

6, But I understand the ACCC's action may be a world-first action in 
so far as it is trying to have this type of advertising declared as illegal
under trade practices law ( as distinct from trademark law). The 
trade practices breach is because the practice deliberately 
misrepresents identity
- i.e. passing your business off as being some other business.

7, IANAL

8, I'm running a Google Adwords workshop in Melbourne next week.


Stewart Carter
eCommerce Report
www.ecommercereport.com.au
Ph 0433 142 419 Fax 0433 142 420 mail at ecommercereport.com.au
Skype: hscarter

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