Over the past couple months I've noticed a startling trend in the posts in this forum. Lots of posts either pointing out or calling out TOS violations. I'm wondering why that is. There used to be great tips here, and there still are but finding them amidst the clutter of all the "tattletale" threads is getting annoying. I realize that over the past year, there has been more than few shady things taking place that have impacted everyone at one time or another, but has it gotten so bad that we are more worried about what the other guy is doing, rather than concentrating on our own stuff. I dunno, I'm just something out there I've been thinking about. Maybe the threads are beneficial, maybe they need their own sub-forum. Just a thought.
AdWords fraud raises the costs of AdWords avertising, while lowering it's value. This discourages AdWords advertisers which, according to the laws of supply and demand, lowers prices. Lowered AdWords prices means lowered payouts to AdSense publishers. We take that pretty seriously around here, because it hits us right in the pocketbook.
Probably when someone starts paying to use Adwords and see some all those TOS violations taking their money away...
No no, it's not that I'm not concerned, if your an Adwords publisher absolutely you should be. But this isn't an Adwords forum and the threads I see getting posted are either nitpicking or simply finger pointing. It's almost as if someone comes up with an idea for something to try, and someone else sees it, if it's different then it's got to be a violation. Like I said, maybe they need their own sub-forum because maybe they are beneficial, it's just that it's becoming so often that to me they are diluting this particular forum.
Fraud directly impacts what publishers get paid (and what advertiser are willing to pay) and I am all for reporting TOS issues - but a report to google is much more important than posting about it on DP.
I think that, for lack of a specific forum for TOS violations, it currently belongs in the "Guidelines / Compliance" forum.
It's called innovation. People/members are constantly trying to push boundaries and rather than waiting for AdSense to approve or ban, other members get a chance to give their input on whatever technique is suggested. It's like auto-moderation. It's how evolution works.
Adsense publishers asking for feedback are also interested in the question whether they are likely to get banned for doing something. I also see tips on whether things are blended well - not because of worries, but because people want to make money. Those are both real time issues. So what?