Google Bans Lingerie Ads For “Sexual” Content
13th December 2007
For a company that likes to portray itself as a “fun” and “cool”, Google has been neither in recent times. In their latest display of prudishness the search giant has banned all the ads from lingerie retailer Pampered Passions’ latest campaign for their supposedly adult content.
The ads in question were part of a Christmas campaign by Pampered Passions. The ads, such as the one featured below show men about to “get some” in return for having bought sexy lingerie for their wives / girlfriends. The combination of topless male torsos and suggestive tag lines, though was far too much for the Google editors.
According to Google, “Only family-safe images will be approved. Images that are classified as non-family-safe or adult content are disapproved and will not run.” They further added that images that contains nudity or have a mature theme are a complete no-no.
It increasingly seems that Google is trying to play the role of an Internet nanny! The ad in question does not have any overt sexual tones or nudity. It is just a harmless campaign, which at most can be seen as a bit on the naughtier side. There is nothing illegal or offensive about the ads. However, Google being an American company seems to force American “values” down everyone’s throats.
We don’t need no moral police!
The move comes across as slightly ridiculous and prudish. If such content does not bother the audience and they are comfortable viewing it, then why is Google hell bent on being the moral police? In fact the stringent policies of Google have started to take an irksome note and have become a frequent occurrence.
This definitely polices the creative freedom of advertisers and the viewing freedom of consumers. In fact steps such as these inconvenience advertisers by compelling them to adopt other marketing strategies. Google shouldn’t try to force its own narrow mindedness on audiences worldwide. A more sensible approach would be to create editorial policies according to the culture and laws of individual countries that they operate in.
Tags: ad, advertising, ban, cpm, google, lingerie, ppc, sexual
4 Responses to “Google Bans Lingerie Ads For “Sexual” Content”
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There’s nothing like lingerie, panties, stripping and hot girls to make it a special night
I could not agree more with Google…
There company should be allowed to decide what they consider acceptable.
I, as a consumer, am tired of being innundated with overt sexual messages.
I am a man and think women look great, but that does not mean I want to look at anyone other than my wife in any sexually overt setting.
There are plenty of soft and hard porn sites for people who want them. But…. for those of us who don’t why shove it at us all day long.
Advertisers don’t have a “right” to show what they want. They have to work inside the terms of the ad venue.
Google should not have banned lingerie ads, they are also doing business. How can girls can know the variety of lingerie available in the market without looking at them in order to make themselve look more hot?!
So they did not accept them in campaign ? Or started treating them as adult links and penalised ?
I don’t think these are particularly offensive, but for some may seem a little adult-oriented and suggestive. G is right to filter their ads, and I guess it is all down to criteria, which this time are a little narrow.