MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - Ending weeks of speculation, Google on Monday announced it would be implementing a new policy that would disallow adult domains in its AdSense for Domains (AFD) program. Defining websites as "any domain whose name, content or advertising is lewd, graphic, or profane," Google stated that AdSense customers with adult domains are required to remove them from the AFD program by May 31.
According to an email sent by Google to its customers, the company additionally "will provide amendments to contracts to exclude adult domains from the exclusivity clause."
At press time, Google had not responded to requests for comment, but the email did state that, "[W]e at Google are constantly working to improve the experiences of advertisers, users and AdSense partners. This change brings our AdSense for Domains program more in line with our AdSense for Content program and will also increase the attractiveness of the AdSense for Domains network for advertisers. Greater satisfaction with the AFD network will lead to more advertisers on the network, providing users with a better experience and domain owners with improved monetization."
Although rumors of the impending decision had been circulating on adult forum GoFuckYourself, the news came as a shock to the industry.
"It really took everybody by surprise," commented GEC Media President Greg Dumas, who also owns and manages several large adult domains that received traffic from the AdSense program. "When you hear those rumors, you think, 'aybe it'l happen in a year, two years.'No one figured six weeks.
"This is a death sentence for a lot of domainers," Dumas went on to say. "It's going to have a twofold effect: All of the people who were buying those ads that the domain traffic was going to…their advertising is going to be affected. They're going to lose a lot of traffic. And, the people who had domains—such as myself—are going to see a drop in revenue."
"It's definitely going to be a major shake-up in the parked-domain industry," said Sevan Derderian, senior account executive at Domain Sponsor, a leading parked-domain monetization company. "A lot of people have invested most recently in some sizeable adult portfolios, and now they're going to be sore about making that choice. There are going to be some repercussions on sales. Now you'l need to look another parking alternative that will take [adult domains]."
Both men predicted that adult-domain holders will bounce back from the setback, however.
"I don' see this as being the end of our business, but it will significantly impact it," Dumas said. "It's such a big marketplace that other people will step up [in Google's place]. Adult traffic is a lot. What I think is that people are going to find an immediate home for their traffic. You just have to hope they optimize and get the same kind of results that Google did."
For his part, Derderian said such a shakedown actually could prove to be a boon for the industry. "It's probably going to be better for people who point their domain traffic to the affiliate programs," he told AVNOnline.com, "because the ones who were pointing traffic to Google and monetizing and getting paid will now have no choice other than to point [traffic] to adult affiliate programs."
Derderian said he predicts Yahoo eventually will follow suit with Google's decision, although he said, "We can' say for sure without the crystal ball."
Yahoo could not be reached at press time.
Dumas also said the development would encourage domain holders to become creative. "I' a veteran of the adult business, and I'e been hit with stuff like this before," he commented. "You just have to step back and square your shoulders and move forward. I think the secret to longevity in this business is your ability to handle situations like this. I mean, if you get kicked in the teeth, you go to the dentist and get new teeth put in and keep chewing."
