Yahoo Search Marketing Implementing Ban on Trademarked Keywords

Erin Blank | 1 March 2006 |

Yahoo has recently announced that it will no longer allow bidding on terms that contain the trademarks of competitors. The search engine company released the following statement earlier this week:

“On March 1, 2006, Yahoo! Search Marketing will modify its editorial guidelines regarding the use of keywords containing trademarks. Previously, we allowed competitive advertising by allowing advertisers to bid on third-party trademarks if those advertisers offered detailed comparative information about the trademark owner’s products or services in comparison to the competitive products and services that were offered or promoted on the advertiser’s site.

In order to more easily deliver quality user experiences when users search on terms that are trademarks, Yahoo! Search Marketing has determined that we will no longer allow bidding on keywords containing competitor trademarks.”

While this sounds like a big change is taking place, there are several key points to keep in mind:

o First, this will apply only to competitors of the trademark holder. For example, while Holiday Inn will not be allowed to bid on the term “Hilton,” eBay will still be able to.

o Second, Google AdWords has restricted the use of trademarked terms in their ads for some time now, and Yahoo Search Marketing already has the ban on trademarked terms in effect in Europe.

o Third, the level of enforcement of this new plan is still under review. It is very likely that enforcement will be based on complaints brought forward by the trademark owners. If the trademark holder makes a big fuss about an infraction, it is much more likely to be penalized.

For more information on this development, please visit The Search Engine Journal.

Erin Blank - Blizzard Internet Marketing, Inc.