Payments information may be delayed

This month we experienced a posting delay that might keep some payment information from appearing in your account immediately. While all payments have been sent out as usual, the 'Payment...' line might take some extra time to show up on the Payment History page of your account under the My Account tab.



Additionally, if you recently signed up to receive payments by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), or added a new bank account for EFT deposits, it may take a few extra days after you've received your test deposit before you can verify your bank account.

We expect to have the issue resolved by the end of this week. Thank you for your patience and, again, don't worry--AdSense payments went out as usual!

Posted by Alexa Bruce - AdSense Publisher Support

Introducing the AdSense API beta

If you're a web developer or host, now you can generate more revenue and improve your service with the new AdSense API. The AdSense API is a free beta service that allows you to integrate AdSense into your website offerings.

What can I do with the AdSense API?

Using the AdSense API, you can enable users to perform a variety of AdSense functions without leaving your website, including the following:

- Create an AdSense account
- Manage an AdSense account
- Create and modify AdSense for content ad units and link units, AdSense for search boxes, and Referrals
- View detailed reports to monitor performance and earnings

How does the AdSense API benefit your site and users?

By making it easy for publishers to sign up for AdSense and generate revenue, the API offers another compelling reason for publishers to choose your service over a competitor's--and remain loyal to you. The AdSense API is great for publishers who don't want the hassle of setting up their own accounts or dealing with cutting and pasting HTML snippets.

How does this generate revenue for you?

Approved AdSense API developers will receive a share of the revenue earned by the publishers you've signed up. In addition to the revenue share, you'll also receive $100 each time a new publisher you've signed up earns $100 in less than 180 days. This means that developers who currently charge for services can now use the AdSense API to offset some of the costs of your services--maybe even making it possible to offer your services free of charge.

Additionally, as the developer, you can optimize your ad's placement, color, and format to increase your users' earnings--and your users don't have to do any additional work to display optimized ads.

Interested?

We've started taking applications from people whose sites receive a minimum of 100,000 daily page views. To be eligible, your site must register users who then maintain their web content through your site. The types of sites we're looking for include web hosts, blog hosts, Wiki hosts, forum hosts, and web publishers.

Visit the AdSense API web site for more information. To see if you qualify for our beta, submit an application today.

Posted by Shirin Oskooi - AdSense Product Management

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.

Posted by Christine Lee - AdSense Product Marketing

Redesigned AdWords referral buttons now available internationally

We've extended our new AdWords referral button designs internationally. The new designs offer several colors and options to choose from, along with a more web-friendly GIF image.

To start displaying the new AdWords referral button of your choice, select Referrals on the AdSense Setup tab of your account and follow the guided referrals wizard.





Posted by Mohammed Abdoolcarim - AdSense Product Marketing

Introducing video ads

Introducing the newest member of the AdSense ad family--click-to-play video ads. Video ads will compete in the same auction as text and image ads for placement on your site, and as we've mentioned before, increased competition in the ad auction means increased revenue potential for you. Video ads open your site up to a whole new type of advertising that is engaging and highly relevant for your users.

We know you're curious as to what these new video ads look like, so here's a sneak preview:



There are no guarantees that click-to-play video ads will appear on your site; however, to increase the chances make sure to:

1) Opt into image ads.

2) Use one of the three ad formats that support video ads: 300x250 Medium Rectangle, 336x280 Large Rectangle, or 250x250 Square.

Also, keep in mind that there are a few things advertisers look for when targeting their ads to specific sites.

Got questions about video ads? We've got answers--check out the Help Center for more information.

Posted by Christine Lee - AdSense Product Marketing

Announcing more referrals options for international publishers

Last month, we announced the launch of text links for referrals for US English only. We're now pleased to let you know that text-link referrals for AdWords, AdSense, Picasa, and Firefox are now available for all AdSense languages.

We've also extended the referrals feature to four new languages: Czech, Croatian, Slovak, and traditional Chinese. Referrals for both AdSense and AdWords are available for these new languages. You'll earn $100 when the publisher you refer to AdSense earns his or her first $100, and $20 once an advertiser you've referred spends at least $100 with AdWords.

To display a referral button on your site, simply choose Referrals from the AdSense Setup page of your account, then select the product you'd like to refer users to on your pages. For more information on how much you'll earn from referrals, you may wish to visit the AdSense Help Center.

Posted by Laura Chen - AdSense Publisher Support

EFT now available in New Zealand, Australia, Norway, and Poland

As promised, we've introduced EFT in several new countries. Publishers located in New Zealand, Australia, Norway, and Poland can now have AdSense payments sent directly to their bank accounts while avoiding postal delays and check processing fees. If you need assistance signing up for EFT in one of these countries, please visit our Help Center.

Posted by Dan Marcus - AdSense Publisher Support