This came after a number of big name advertisers dropped their partnerships with Google, after adverts were revealed to have been placed alongside extremist content on video-sharing platform YouTube.
The Sunday Times found that advertising content had been published next to videos of Klu Klux Klan leader David Duke and groups linked to Isis.
And after Google’s UK managing director set out plans to give advertisers greater control, now Google’s Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler has written a lengthy post reassuring advertisers about the company’s plans to change its advertising policies.
Schindler said: “Recently, we had a number of cases where brands’ ads appeared on content that was not aligned with their values.
“For this, we deeply apologise. We know that this is unacceptable to the advertisers and agencies who put their trust in us.
“That’s why we’ve been conducting an extensive review of our advertising policies and tools, and why we made a public commitment last week to put in place changes that would give brands more control over where their ads appear.”
Schindler said that Google will be removing ads from content that is “attacking or harassing people based on their race, religion, gender or similar categories”, and will only display them on legitimate channels.
He also announced a change to the default settings for where ads are shared, along with new controls for advertisers to restrict where their content can be posted.
Google will also offer more transparency about where ads are placed, strengthen the review process for “questionable content” and make it easier for advertisers to flag issues.
Schindler added: “We believe the combination of these new policies and controls will significantly strengthen our ability to help advertisers reach audiences at scale, while respecting their values.
“We will continue to act swiftly to put these new policies and processes in place across our ad network and YouTube. But we also intend to act carefully, preserving the value we currently provide to advertisers, publishers and creators of all sizes.
“In the end, there’s nothing more important to Google than the trust we’ve built amongst our users, advertisers, creators and publishers. Brand safety is an ongoing commitment for us, and we’ll continue to listen to your feedback.”
To find out more about the story please click here.