Google Program Lets Readers Pay a Buck a Month to Block Ads

Web publishers for 15 years have struggled with getting readers to pay for content they are accustomed to acquiring for free. Pay walls have been built and dismantled, print-and-digital packages have launched and often failed, but Google's going to see if viewers are happy to throw coins into the digital publisher's hat if they don't have to see those godforsaken ads. The Mountain View, Calif.-based tech giant is testing a program called Contributor by Google with 10 publishers, including The Onion, Imgur and Mashable, in which users can pay $1, $2 or $3 a month to not see ads. A "thank you" message will appear in place of the promos, and the user will pitch in pennies from their $1 to $3 allotment every time they visit one of the sites.  A Contributor by Google website went live yesterday, stating, "When you visit a participating website, part of your contribution goes to the creators of that site." It's unclear whether the system eliminates video and native ads. But if the program works for the test partners, more Web publishers are certain to follow. Continue reading at 'AdWeek'

[ AdWeek | 2014-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #native ads #digital publisher #mountain view

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Google and ABC Build a Programmatic Ad Exchange That Only Buys Mastheads

Google's private programmatic exchanges can now book premium ad space like mastheads for brands. It is working with ABC to promote the new show Rising Star using an exchange that only places ads in prominent positions, ones that are not typically associated with automated buying. "This exchange... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2014-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google launches 'cookie choices' site to let Europeans know how they're being tracked

Google has launched a new site, CookieChoices.org, to help visitors of European sites learn more about the digital breadcrumbs they leave behind through cookies.The site includes code that publishers can use to incorporate notifications into their own sites and apps. The notifications could take... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2014-07-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book Crowdfunding Platform Pentian Pays Writers and Readers

Spain's Pentian crowdfunding platform for books offers a new business model: paying 50% of profits from book sales to backers of the book and 40% to the author. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-06-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google Looks Beyond YouTube For Video Ad Dollars

Google has a new message for premium publishers: "Hey, let us help you sell your video ads."Google has created a new ad-buying program for premium publishers to automate their video ad sales in a bid to expand their video business beyond YouTube.The company already helps some publishers manage... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2014-06-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google Opens Exclusive Video Ad Market For Only Select Publishers And Brands

Google is launching a programmatic video marketplace that it says will only include premium publishers and select brands. Neal Mohan, vp of display and video advertising, announced the video ad platform today at a DoubleClick customer conference. The marketplace is called Google Partner Select... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2014-06-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Veronica Roth Added to BookCon Program

Bestselling author Veronica Roth has been added to the list of A-list literary names that will headline events at the consumer show following BookExpo America, BookCon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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When Publishers Pay for Video Ad Views

Quality video ad inventory is still scarce. That's why companies such as Conde Nast, Meredith, AOL, and Entrepreneur.com are eager to generate as many video views as they possible can, and why they buy traffic from platforms like Swagbucks to help.The post When Publishers Pay for Video Ad Views... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google v Authors Guild: a victory for readers' right to choose

A Manhattan court case about digitisation rights has brought books and the web a step closer togetherOn 14 November, after eight years of wrangling, Judge Denny Chin of the Manhattan district court finally ruled in the case of Google versus the Authors Guild. At issue was Google's scanning and... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-11-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With Readers Still Willing to Pay, Is Publishing Catching a Break?

In the New Republic, Evan Hughes argues that the book business has fared far better than music, movies and other media in sustaining its value to consumers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Major Publishers Untroubled by Ad Blocking

According to ad-blocking data provider PageFair, more users are now making use of browser plugins such as Adblock Plus to remove ads from the sites they visit. A recent report it published claimed the trend “is threatening the business mode ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-09-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Humble Comedy Bundle lets you pay what you want for laughs, big spenders get Louis CK

The Humble business model can apply to anything. Now, you can pay what you want for stand-up comedy in addition to ebooks, music and video games. For the next two weeks, you can get comedy specials from Maria Bamford, Tig Notaro, Hannibal Buress and Jim Norton for as little or as much as you... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-08-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Browsers block ads, threaten free sites, researchers say

Nearly one in four browsers are armed with an ad-blocking tool, reducing revenue at free-content websites, an Irish company said last week. The popularity of ad blocking—driven by users' frustrations with intrusive, distracting or just-plain-ugly-and-noisy ads—threatens the free-for-all model... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2013-08-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google adding textbooks to the Play Store

While most people associate Android with text-messages, Google hopes you will think of it in another "text" aspect too -- textbooks. Today, Google announces that it is bringing textbooks to the Play Store. The company has partnered with all five major textbook publishers -- Cengage, Wiley,... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Kindle tops yearly Japan e-reader sales five months after launch

Amazon.com's Kindle e-reader has dominated the competition in Japan since its launch last year, according to new research, showing the company's low pricing and powerful brand may have overcome its late entrance into the market. The Kindle accounted for 38.3 percent of the e-reader market in... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2013-07-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Books' First to Read program will give readers sneak peeks

Through First to Read, members will have the chance to get advance reading copies of Penguin Books before they are published. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-06-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The outrage and sadness of Google Reader's demise

Pope Who? White smoke over the Vatican doesn't stand a chance as a trending topic next to the black cloud over one of Google's most beloved products. Google Reader has landed on the company's sunset list, and will wink out of existence on July 1. Problem is, Reader is not as widely beloved as... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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France Rejects Plan to Block Online Ads

The Internet service provider Free restored the ads after meetings with French online publishing and advertising groups, which had complained about a loss of revenue. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2013-01-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Did Google Pay Belgian Newspapers a $6M Copyright Fee? Sure Looks Like It.

Europeans have been trying for years to force Google to prop up the continent’s’ struggling news publishers. A new deal in Belgium suggests they have finally succeeded. In a blog post on Wednesday, Google said it has resolved a ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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French Media Sites Demand Google Pay for Using Their Content

Publishers want a slice of Google ad revenue. France's major online newspaper publishers have called for a new legislation which will ensure internet search engines including Google have to pay them for using their published content. Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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