| So here's the "million dollar question": Which is | | | | very daunting reason. YPN does NOT allow |
| better, Yahoo Publisher Network or Google | | | | publishers to display their ads to NON-US visitors, |
| AdSense? | | | | and in fact will boot you from their program for |
| Let me make this short and sweet .. YPN is | | | | doing so, if even inadvertently. With YPN a |
| better for well-established websites with US-based | | | | publisher would be required to resolve to their |
| visitors, and AdSense is better for un-established | | | | own geo-targeting solution in order to prevent ads |
| - or under-established - websites with a majority | | | | from being displayed to visitors from outside of |
| of visitors from outside of the US. | | | | the US. |
| Allow me to explain why in more detail. | | | | While AdSense, on the other hand, implements |
| The number one reason Google's AdSense | | | | geo-targeting directly and serves the ads up on |
| program has far outweighed Yahoo's Publisher | | | | your website with the visitors location already in |
| Network is because they've been able to spread | | | | mind. You can not be penalized by AdSense for |
| out as far and wide as possible in as little time as | | | | which visitors view what ads, simply because |
| possible. Some may argue that this has caused | | | | they take care of all this for you in-house. This |
| Google to stretch their selves far too thin and | | | | makes AdSense worry-free, requiring virtually no |
| possibly cause instability in the contextual | | | | tech-savvy skills, for those website publishers |
| advertising industry, but that remains to be seen. | | | | who aren't too familiar with coding. |
| At this point it is only speculation whether or not | | | | Another underlying, and sometimes oblique, |
| either program has become ineffective or | | | | constraint between the two programs is that you |
| unprofitable to advertisers or publishers | | | | technically cannot use both on the same website. |
| respectively. | | | | Some publishers will hard-code their websites to |
| Google has been able to cater to a diverse | | | | display only YPN ads to US visitors and AdSense |
| audience of independent or direct marketers with | | | | ads to non-US visitors so that both do not appear |
| its AdWords program over the years and they | | | | on the same web page at the same time. |
| have managed to more than quadruple their | | | | For YPN this does not seem to cause a problem, |
| shares doing so. This brings us to Yahoo, which | | | | seeing as to how their Terms of Service explicitly |
| has still proven itself in the market second to | | | | state that using similar or other third-party |
| Google, in contextual advertising, but remains | | | | advertising is not prohibited given that YPN ads |
| advantageous in respects to displayed and | | | | are not displayed on the same web page as ads |
| branded advertising from larger firms. | | | | of a competing contextual advertising program (i.e. |
| In regards to payout YPN retains generally higher | | | | AdSense). However, some publishers have |
| CPC (Cost Per Click) than Google and thus | | | | reportedly been banned from the AdSense |
| appears more profitable to publishers. YPN also | | | | program for using YPN even on the same |
| sets a minimum monthly budget for its advertises | | | | website. While this is unlikely accurate (since |
| in order to create advertiser integrity and | | | | Google will never tell you exactly why it is you |
| increase revenues, whereas Google has no | | | | have been banned from AdSense) it may be |
| minimum spending budget and imposes less | | | | possible, because carefully having reviewed the |
| stringent screening of their ads. | | | | Terms of Service there are restrictions that |
| The only real noticeable difference is that | | | | seem all too vague, but considerably risky to |
| AdSense seems to make a lot more sense. What | | | | leave unascertained. But then again Google seems |
| I mean is AdSense will display far more relevant | | | | to be changing their Terms of Service for |
| ads in regard to the content of its pages than | | | | AdSense publishers constantly. |
| YPN. For a website publisher this means that the | | | | Overall, AdSense seems to be a much faster and |
| chances of a visitor clicking on an ad - and thus | | | | effective method of website monetization for the |
| generating commission for the publisher - are a lot | | | | average publisher as opposed to the laggy slower |
| higher with AdSense. | | | | YPN. AdSesne will likely review your website and |
| This is what we refer to as a conversion rate; | | | | either approve or deny your application for a |
| the number of ad impressions made versus the | | | | publisher account within 2 to 3 business days. YPN |
| number of times ads have been clicked on. The | | | | may take up to two full weeks. Let's not also |
| higher the conversion rate the more money you | | | | forget that YPN has been in beta for several |
| make as a publisher. So in a sense Google | | | | years now. |
| AdSense can more than make up for what it | | | | If you're just starting out as a website publisher |
| lacks in CPC with what it generates in higher | | | | and need a fast and easy way to monetize your |
| conversion.Both YPN and AdSense are free to | | | | pages in a hurry, stick with AdSense. However, if |
| join and extremely easy to implement on any | | | | you're an experienced website publisher with a |
| website with even the most basic HTML and | | | | large well-established US-based visitor count, you |
| web-design knowledge. However, YPN requires a | | | | may be able to use YPN to a greater advantage. |
| little more maintenance than AdSense for one | | | | |