James Melton says, “If this is more than a test, Amazon’s use of such ads could make Google Shopping a more expensive place for rival online retailers to compete.

In what could be a big win for Google, Amazon.com Inc. has—at least on a trial basis—started buying Google Product Listing Ads (PLAs), putting it in the mix of Google Shopping advertisers in the United States—likely for the first time.

According to marketing firm Merkle Inc., Amazon No. 1 in the Internet Retailer 2016 Top 500 Guide, started running the ads around Dec. 20.

“We have seen Amazon running PLAs for a range of product categories including toys and office supplies, but its presence has been strongest in the home goods and furnishings category,” says Mark Ballard, senior director, research at Merkle, who also wrote about the Amazon ads in a recent blog post. “We are not seeing them show for consumer electronics or apparel yet.”

PLAs are ads that present product images, prices and business names to users searching on Google. Advertisers pay when consumers click through to visit their websites or view their local inventories directly on Google”.

Amazon’s test of Product Listing Ads is bad news for other retailers

Internet Retailer

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