Prior to the 2019 general elections, tech giant Google, on Tuesday, said it will announce publicly on its platform about the overall political advertisements attaching important details like who is purchasing election ads and the money spent.
“To bring more transparency to the online election ads, Google will introduce an India-specific Political Advertplatforms and how much money is being spent,” Google added in a statement.
Th“In 2019, more than 850 million Indians are expected to cast their vote to elect the country’s next government. To support the democratic process, Google is bringing more openness to election advertising online, and helping connect people to useful and relevant election-related information,” Chetan Krishnaswamy, Director Public Policy, Google India said in a statement.
The India Political Ads Transparency Report and Ads Library will go live in March 2019, it said. Google’s strategy is aimed at bringing “openness to election advertising online and enabling voters to get the election-related information they need”.
“We know that in the build-up to elections, people need useful and relevant information to help them navigate the electoral process. For the Lok Sabha Election 2019, Google will make electoral information from the Election Commission of India and other authoritative sources easily discoverable on Search.
We’re thinking hard about elections and how we continue to support democratic processes in India and around the world. Today’s updates are a step forward in this direction, and we will continue to invest in initiatives that build further on our commitment towards election transparency,” Chetan added.
The decision comes at a time after when digital platforms came under pressure to bring clarity into political ads, and are facing increased inspection in large markets that are headed for elections.
Last month, Facebook said it will make it mandatory for advertisers to reveal their identity and location before any such ad material that can be run on the popular social media platform.
