On March 27, Bing Ads will remove the restrictions it has on using trademarks as keywords in global markets. This change essentially means more advertisers around the world can trademarks they don’t own.
Bing notes that while it’s removing restrictions on the use of trademarks as keywords, it will continue to enforce protection of keywords in ad copy itself.
“For instance, fair use of a trademark in ad copy will continue to be allowed for resellers of an authentic good or service, informational websites (such as product reviews), the ordinary dictionary use of a term, or comparative advertising (when supported by independent research).”
In addition to giving advertisers the freedom to bid on competitors’ trademarks, another benefit of this change is cross-market alignment. When the change rolls out, it will be easier for advertisers to transfer campaigns between major search engines with less manual optimization effort.
Bing also emphasizes there will be benefits for customers. When they search for trademarked terms they will see a broader range of results, leading to a better search experience.
With this change already being implemented in the US, it will soon come into effect in the following global markets: Australia, Brazil, France, Italy, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Singapore.