Should new ASA remit extend to organic search listings?

Post by Richard Morris on 6th September 2010
 in SEO, PPC, Google, Display advertising, Yahoo

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has received the support of the search engine industry as it prepares to adopt an extended remit.

From March 1, 2011 the ASA will have powers to rule on advertising practices used on corporate websites, mobile apps and social networks. When the new powers come into force, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have agreed to remove paid search adverts which link to material the ASA has found breaks the rules.   

However, should the search engines also be removing organic listing that link to the same material? That’s the question posed by Will Cooper, news editor of New Media Age.

He said: “SEO results could well be linking to the same destinations that fall foul of ASA rulings as the paid links, so surely they should be treated equally? It’s not that much harder for Google, Microsoft or Yahoo to pull natural results than it is to pull paid-for ones.”

However, Cooper says one question is whether the firm’s SEO strategy means it is paying for the organic result in the same way it is paying for PPC result.   

He said: “If the ASA wants to truly make its mark online, SEO should be considered on the same level as paid.”

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