The latest news about search ads. Search ads, also known as paid search advertising or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, are a type of online advertising that appears in search engine results pages (SERPs). When a user searches for a keyword or phrase, search ads are displayed at the top and bottom of the SERP.
Google today launched its February 2026 Discover core update for English users in the US, promising to reduce clickbait while promoting locally relevant and expert content.
Google added source icons to AI Mode showing when responses use Gmail, Photos, YouTube, or Search data through Personal Intelligence feature.
Google's John Mueller cautioned against excessive technical analysis for redirect optimization, stating most issues are visible during normal browsing.
Google's local pack ads surged from less than 3% to 22% of tracked mobile keywords between November 2025 and January 2026, marking unprecedented change in search results.
Traditional search maintained 10% of desktop activity through 2025 while AI tools grew to 0.77%, with users writing longer queries rather than switching platforms.
Google Ads API v23 introduces channel-level reporting for Performance Max, enabling developers to break down ad performance across Search, YouTube, Display, Gmail, Maps, and Discover.
Cloudflare data shows Googlebot accesses 3.2x more unique URLs than OpenAI and 4.8x more than Microsoft, as UK regulator considers crawler separation mandate.
Microsoft search advertising revenue increased 10% to $3.8 billion in Q2 fiscal 2026 as cloud business surpassed $50 billion quarterly milestone for first time.
Google explores website controls to opt out of AI Overviews and AI Mode following UK Competition and Markets Authority requirements announced January 28, 2026.
Publishers would control AI training opt-outs while Google must prove fair ranking under first UK digital markets conduct requirements targeting search dominance.
Google extends structured data carousel support to food delivery, car hire, and bus booking in South Africa on January 21, requiring no new markup from businesses.
Google to revoke gambling certificates from Manager Accounts with poor policy health and introduce stricter domain requirements starting March 23, 2026.
