Google to ban harmful, intrusive web ads globally starting July 9

Beginning July 9, 2019, Chrome web browsers worldwide will expand user protections and stop showing disruptive and potentially harmful ads. The safeguards are in place for North America and Europe, but will expand globally come summer.

Google”s planned update for July 9 is driven by the Better Ads Standards developed by the Coalition for Better Ads, a consortium dedicated to improving the web advertising experience based on feedback from over 66,000 consumers worldwide.

The group has identified 12 advertising tools that users find intrusive, including pop-ups, auto-play ads, presidential ads, and large sticky ads. Mobile users are particularly disrupted by full-screen scroll over ads, flashing animated ads, banners with a density larger than 30%, and others.

The Coalition for Better Ads this week announced plans to expand its standards beyond North America and Europe, and Google, being the commander of the Internet that it is, will follow suit with a special update for Chrome users.

“Following the Coalition”s lead, beginning July 9, 2019, Chrome will expand its user protections [globally] and stop showing all ads on sites in any country that repeatedly display these disruptive ads,” according to a post on the Chromium blog.

If you own a website, you want to be sure you don”t attract the referee”s ire come July 9, so consider reviewing your site status in the Ad Experience Report. The tool is designed to identify ad experiences that violate the Better Ads Standards. If the tool finds a violation, you can request a review of your site after you’ve fixed the issues. This not only helps your site, but also helps publishers in the long run, expanding their understanding of intrusive ad experiences.