logoalt Hacker News

Marsymars • yesterday at 6:43 PM • 4 replies • view on HN

> It ought to be illegal to host ads for registered trademarks (+/- some edit distance).

This makes me a bit uncomfortable because of how close it comes to infringing on freedom of speech, and how specific a rule it would for search engines (and chat bots) - i.e. there's no real analogy of "can't target trademarked terms" for any ad format other than search engines.

I think my preference would be to simply enforce laws around fraud. If you're a business and you intentionally mislead people, that's fraud, pure and simple. Bring the enforcement hammer down so that companies don't dare make an ad that granny might mistake for not being an ad. Make them err far on the side of making ads look unmistakably like ads for fear of ruinous fines.

Replies

coldtea • yesterday at 7:17 PM

>This makes me a bit uncomfortable because of how close it comes to infringing on freedom of speech,

That's fine, ads should be downright forbidden and get no "freedom of speech".

Nevermark • yesterday at 7:10 PM

It wouldn't impinge on freedom of speech. Nothing would be prohibited from being said.

It would require conflicts of interest to be disclosed clearly. I.e. labelling speech incentivized by someone else (ad buyer) clearly, as not organic speech (the search engine results).

That is pro-transparency and ethics, not anti-speech.

➕ show 1 reply
eastbound • yesterday at 6:59 PM

Let’s remember it’s not new: Back in 2005, gannies (and 20yo non-nerds too) would install all sorts of viruses by clicking on popups thinking it’s the real thing. I personally switched to Firefox then Mac which didn’t have this problem. It’s like browsing a torrent website without an adblocker: There is absolutely no way to hit the right button, it’s URL changes between mousedown and mouseup.

echelon • yesterday at 6:53 PM

You're not allowed to use Pikachu commercially. Why should Google? They're taking advantage of every trademark to make money.

Googling a trademark should activate a "no bids" mode.

If Google wants to defend this action, then they should explain why they turned the URL bar into a search product and bought up 90% of the real estate. They've been incredibly heavy handed in search, web, and ads.

➕ show 1 reply