Google revenues are still benefiting from insurance and finance – The Top Dog for online advertising.

Source: Wordstream

Finance and Insurance #1 Annual Google Spending is a post from: Insiders View

sometimes it is unclear exactly who is responsible for pointing a customer towards a certain insurance product. By extension, it is therefore unclear to whom a customer should complain if things go wrong.
FSA spokesman

Whitelabeled Comparison Sites At Risk is a post from: Insiders View

Google made 6.8 Billion Dollars on Insurance Last Year is a post from: Insiders View

Content and Infographics still SEO Royalty is a post from: Insiders View

MoneySavingExpert, a British personal finance site with 5 million readers, was forced to hand over personal details about three users calling themselves Againstjpc, GomerPyle and Ladybirds, following a London court ruling in August. The three wrote comments on the website accusing JPC Group Sales Ltd., an affiliate of a U.K. publishing company, of being a “criminal enterprise” and “a scam,” the company said in court filings.

Source: Businessweek

MoneySavingExpert Reveals Identities of its Forum Users is a post from: Insiders View

What I always think is missing from these arguments is what the law has to say about any of this.  Surprising because Arrington is a lawyer by training.

Then again he’s always been careful to say he’s not a journalist, not like his counterpart at Techcrunch Europe Mike Butcher who says he is “press”.

Here’s a stab at a definition of what editorial is legally speaking written by the advertiser’s self regulator the Advertising Standards Authority in a letter to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) during a consultation over advertising of formula milk. The FSA and ASA were arguing about who controlled messages about formula milk. They both wanted as much control as possible for different reasons.

It references European law implemented into UK law in the  Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and it addresses exactly what is marketing communication and what is editorial communication.

3.3 The FSA’s broad definition appears to capture editorial content or communications that are not disseminated and/ or paid for by the manufacturer of formula milks or their agents (e.g. an advertising agency or retailer). European law very clearly considers that what constitutes an advertisement is restricted to materials disseminated by or on behalf of a commercial (trade or professional) interest. The FSA’s definition currently appears to capture editorial content (e.g. material disseminated by journalists and TV and radio programme makers) and even communications between individuals.

The essential components according to the ASA’s interpretation of the law are:

• Marketers are prevented by law from paying for it
• It goes through the hands of an editor working for an organisation recognised as being in the business of editorial.

What do you think?

Editorial, legally speaking is a post from: Insiders View

Surely it devalues the customer? How cheap does it make them look?

More often than not, these blogs are SEO blogs that should know better!

Increase In Blogs Selling Out – Publishing Paid Content is a post from: Insiders View

The European Heath Insurance Card does offer some assistance it’s true; for example if you break your arm in Austria you can walk into a state-run hospital and have the treatment covered by the NHS in the UK. However, this card is only a fall back offering only a basic level of cover for hospital treatment. It does not cover repatriation costs, baggage, theft, or cancellation and it definitely does not cover the costs associated with being airlifted to hospital after breaking your leg on the ski slopes.

There is no reciprocal health agreement in place for the US, the land of extortionately priced medical treatment. Even simple treatment in America can spiral into the thousands and again, without insurance you won’t have any cover against loss of luggage, money or other property and you’ll get nothing if your holiday is cancelled.

Some countries don’t have health centres of the same standard as we have become used to in the UK. This could mean you end up having sub-level treatment because you can’t afford to make it to the nearest international-standard facility on your own back, or – and we aren’t sure which is worse – you get flown to a hospital that is of a high standard but that might be several hour’s away. This transportation will be incredibly costly, even in a developing nation.

The risks of travelling without insurance, especially outside of Europe and/or on a winter sport holiday simply aren’t worth taking. Insurance doesn’t need to be expensive. You can get simple single-trip cover or if you like to go on holiday regularly, an annual multi-trip policy will be more appropriate. Costs are relatively low, with some policies available for just a few Pounds a day.

There are other ways to save money too. With Santander’s travel insurance you’ll get 25% off just for applying online and you’ll be entered into a prize draw to win £1,000 of lastminute.com vouchers. Maybe an annual trip policy is better after all.

One in five Brits goes on holiday without travel insurance is a post from: Insiders View

Buildings Insurance – This will cover the structural elements of your home, from outbuildings to permanent fixtures and fittings. Driveways, fences, patios and windows are normally covered as well, sometimes for accidental damage. Buildings insurance is essential for the wellbeing of your property as you need to be covered in the event of a fire, or for any unknown structural complications. You can sometimes also be covered for the cost of finding alternative accommodation if, following an event, your property cannot be lived in for some time. Buildings insurance is pretty straightforward, but you should always read the exact wording of any policy you wish to take out to ensure you understand it all. And if there’s anything you need explaining then just ask the policy provider.

Contents Insurance – This will cover, as the name suggests, the contents of your home. You’ll need to inform your insurance company of exactly what items your own and how much they’re worth so that the total value can be calculated and your insurance policy worked out accordingly. You can often cover certain items such as electrical goods for accidental damage, and most insurers will allow for this on a standard policy. If you’ve got any really valuable items then you must be sure to tell insurance companies of this, as some will have a maximum value for one single item, and a failure to declare could mean that item is not covered. Anything which would not normally be found in a home should also be declared, and this can be anything from specialist sports equipment (skis, surf boards) to collectable artwork. Santander home insurance offers an easy to understand breakdown on their website at www.santander.co.uk, with a simple table to tell you what is insured as standard and up to what value. You can look on price comparison websites to find a good quote, but insurers are increasingly offering better deals for customers who go directly to their website. Santander for example are currently offering 20% off home insurance on their website, so you should keep an eye out for deals such as this.

Lastly, the best thing you can do in terms of protecting your home is to be vigilant. Make sure your doors have multiple locks, and that these are used, preferably with bolts, when you go to bed at night. A working burglar alarm should always be installed, and window alarms are an affordable but effective way to make your home that bit more secure.

Understanding Buildings and Contents Insurance For Your Home is a post from: Insiders View

Consumer websites sign up subscribers by offering access to free guides

Daily deal websites ask for email addresses for access

Website owners have been told they must decide how they are going to comply with a change in the law concerning cookies.

The new law requires a user’s consent to place cookies on their device and comes into force on 26th May 2011. The enforcer is the Information Commissioner’s Office. It has issued guidance.

As this is a change in the law, the ICO’s guidance carries more weight than its advice on good and bad website practices which is often ignored.

Collecting email addresses for access to websites for example  is deemed bad practice by the ICO but is standard practice across sales websites. The ICO cannot take enforcement action against bad practice but will have a statutory duty to enforce changes in the law.

The techniques that websites already use to collect email addresses could now be used to gain user’s informed consent to placing cookies on their machines before giving them access to websites.

Website owners, how are you planning to ask users for consent?

Cookie confusion is a post from: Insiders View