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Google Adds MySQL To Trademark AdWords Keyword Ban List

Google Bans MySQL AdsA DigitalPoint Forums thread has discussion over a new trademarked term that made it into Google's trademark policy list. The word is "MySQL" and is the name of one of the more popular open source database systems.

Yesterday, I received an email that one of my demo ads (wasn't live anyway) was disapproved due to trademark violations. I read it, thought to myself, no big deal and trashed the email. But some are upset. Showing an ad for MySQL does help promote the brand in many ways. For example, if you are a developer that specializes in MySQL, then putting ads out there for that term, might benefit both parties. If you are a development company looking to hire MySQL engineers (like we are), then that also promotes and helps the MySQL company.

That being said, the easy way around it is to just drop of the "My" from the "SQL" in the ad copy and you would be set. Clearly, it won't help brand the database company, but that is their call.

Forum discussion at DigitalPoint Forums.



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posted rustybrick in Google AdWords at March 17, 2009 8:17 AM Comments (2)

Comments

I wonder if this is the list Google looked at when they did their "brands" update

 

Working for a Sun Microsystems partner, I was surprised to encounter this problem as well. Instead of “MySQL” I put a space as “My SQL”. Hopefully the click-through rates will not decline as a result of the ban.

 

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