AdSense is pausing monetization for some Ukraine-related topics

AdSense has emailed publishers reminding them of a new policy related to Russia’s war against Ukraine that could result in lost revenue. The update is intended to expand existing policies on this and clarify where ads aren’t allowed to show.

Google is pausing monetization of certain content

The email sent to publishers was a reminder of a new policy regarding war on Ukraine content and an extension of the current policy against content monetization

Google identified the update in the email subject line as “Important note: update regarding Ukraine.”

The notification said:

“Due to the war in Ukraine, we will pause monetization of content that exploits, dismisses, or condones the war.

… This pause includes, among other things, allegations that suggest the victims are responsible for their own tragedy, or similar cases of victim attribution, such as allegations that Ukraine is committing genocide or intentionally attacking its own citizens.”

The above emailed notice expands on the recently updated official Google guidelines for publishers.

The latest policy update posted online simply states:

“Due to the war in Ukraine, we will pause monetization of content that exploits, dismisses, or condones the war.”

The AdSense policy is an agreement

By participating in the AdSense program, the publisher agrees to comply with the policies set forth in the program.

Publishers that offer user-generated content, for example in comments or in online forums, should be particularly aware of this new policy.

Publishers who insist on hosting content that violates Google’s policies must remove Google AdSense from pages hosting content that violates AdSense policies.

The policy does not dictate what type of content publishers can post.

It just notifies publishers about what types of content AdSense is allowed to appear on.

The policy itself states:

“Google helps enable a free and open web by helping publishers monetize their content and helping advertisers reach potential customers with useful, relevant products and services.” To maintain trust in the advertising ecosystem, we need to set limits on monetization.”

Therefore, if your content does not comply with the rules governing how content is monetized, publishers should consider removing ads from these pages, because although Google can stop monetizing the ads, Google could also terminate the AdSense account entirely.

The directive states:

“Failure to comply with these guidelines may result in Google blocking your content from serving ads, or suspending or terminating your account.”

Citation

Google Publisher Guidelines

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