Copyright Sunday, June 22, 2008 Duncan Bucknell
Company
IP Review, issue 22
This article was first published in CPA's
IP Review, issue 22.
When Google launched its AdWords advertising programme
in 2003, keyword-linked advertising seemed to herald the future
of online advertising. If only it didn't infringe brand
owners' IP Rights in the process, says
Duncan Bucknell
It all seemed to make perfect sense. Companies looking to
ensure their details appeared at the top of a web search
results page simply had to purchase
'pay-per-click' advertising banners that linked
to particular industry-specific search terms. So, for example,
if a consumer was looking to find 'trademark
counsel', the law firm that had sponsored those
keywords with a search engine provider, such as Google or
Yahoo!, would appear next to the actual search results. It
sounds no different from selecting the
