Yuwie - Isn't it ironic?!

Yesterday I added a post about Yuwie.com and its potential to generate income for its users. If you haven't heard about Yuwie yet, its a new friend networking website like MySpace or Friendster that pays you and your referrals a percentage of its monthly income from Google AdSense.

Basically I pointed out that the more Yuwie's users click on Yuwie's Google ads, the more income Yuwie makes as a whole and therefore the more income its users will generate. I noted that Yuwie can't tell its users to click on the ads because of Google AdSense regulations.

Some of my Yuwie friends made some fabulous points as well. Such as no one should click on ads in a suspicious way. Google really does watch like a hawk. And using the Google search bar on the top of the Control Panel page is a cool idea. I have one at the top of mine. Using the search bar and clicking on the links does bring the AdSense user revenue. Plus you are going to Google search anyway, why not do it while using the Yuwie network?!

Here's my spiel: Yes, Google really does watch like a hawk. Programs do analyze the ratio between ads posted and ads clicked. Many AdSense users are banned for illegal clicking - clicking on their own ads too often to rake in the earnings. But Yuwie is such a large website! And while, no, you wouldn't want to sit on your computer for an hour simply refreshing Yuwie pages and clicking on ads, it can't hurt to click on a few while you are using the website because that is how Yuwie generates its income. Of course, click on ads because you are interested. In doing so it is unlikely that there is a risk of click fraud. Everyone on Yuwie is using the website from a different IP internet address or location. A few clicks a day from so many different IP addresses should not warrant Google AdSense to ban Yuwie. Seriously, have fun on Yuwie just like you would on MySpace! The website is for fun.

What's so ironic is that Yuwie users get a cut of Yuwie.com's monthly earnings while the users are the people who are clicking on the ads! I use Yuwie so I shouldn't complain but come on - doesn't anyone else see the problem with this? Technically Yuwie is paying its users to click on ads. No, Yuwie isn't telling its users to click on ads. Yes, CPM ads generate some of Yuwie's earnings. However, unlike MySpace, who does not encourage clicks, does not pay its users and has users anyway, Yuwie gives part of its AdSense earnings to its users... the very users that generate the income in the first place, essentially.

Maybe I am not giving credit where credit is deserved. But is it fair to the little guy who gets banned from Google AdSense that a large website like Yuwie does not? I guess so long as you don't solicit the clicking of your ads you can give your earnings to whomever you want. It's just different than websites that pay you to share or refer their content. I can't get my head around it!

Yuwie is not doing anything wrong. The website does nothing different than MySpace or Friendster other than giving its users a percentage of its earnings. The idea is the same as any other website that displays Google ads. You use the content or applications. You click on Google ads when interested. But once you are aware of the way in which Yuwie generates the money you get a cut of, how can you click on an ad without thinking in the back of your head that you will be getting a cut of that click? So far, Google AdSense tolerates it. Is Yuwie a great new system, or just sliding past the radar because there is no rule against it.. yet, or both? Perhaps I will come to terms with it at some point. Haha, it's not the worst thing in the world. Don't lose any sleep over it, okay?