Hi,

We logged 26 changes this week across Google Ads, Merchant Center, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Microsoft Ads, ChatGPT Ads and Search Console, and three of them are high impact.

The big ones

• Automated promotions switch on by default on October 12. (High impact) Google emailed advertisers to say that from October 12 it will automatically find and extract promotions such as coupons and deals from your website and apply them to your campaigns. Enrollment is automatic and opt-out, and it covers Search and Performance Max campaigns with linked location assets that do not already have promotion assets. If you do not want Google pulling offers off your site, turn Automated promotions off in your account-level automated assets settings before Monday. Details
• A video engagement now needs 10 seconds watched, not 5. (High impact) Google updated its engagements reporting documentation so a viewer has to watch at least 10 seconds of a video ad for it to count. Engagement counts and engagement rates are recalculated on the new rules, so your numbers may look lower for reasons that have nothing to do with performance. Do not compare engagement figures across the change without flagging it. Details
• Local Services Ads now charges for missed calls over 20 seconds. (High impact) Google substantially rewrote its Local Services Ads guide to how leads work. An unanswered call can be charged if the caller stays connected for more than 20 seconds during business hours, and Google clarified when that clock starts for IVR and voicemail systems. The page also adds a 30-day lead review window, four charge statuses, and a 15-day rule that generally stops repeat contact from the same customer being charged twice. Check how your phone tree answers calls, because a long menu can now cost you money. Details
• Demand Gen Display view-through conversions moved to a rendered-impression standard. Google is switching how a view counts for view-through conversion attribution on Display ads inside Demand Gen, from Active View to a rendered ad impression. One on-screen pixel for any length of time now counts, so reported view-through conversions can rise with no change in performance. It rolls out automatically and needs no settings change, but treat view-through comparisons that span the switch with care. Details
• Conversion Lift studies became self-service. Google rewrote the help page so you can set up a Conversion Lift study yourself instead of going through a Google representative. The thresholds are at least 1,000 observed conversions, a minimum campaign budget of $5,000, and one compatible conversion action. Display, Search, Video, Demand Gen, App and Performance Max are supported; iOS app campaigns and Travel ads are not. Details
• AI Max will now show you its ad copy before you opt in. A new text customization asset previews feature generates up to 10 sample headlines and descriptions from a landing page URL, so you can see what AI Max would write before enabling it or launching a campaign. Previews respect your text guidelines and work in every language text customization supports. If you have been holding off on text customization because you could not see the output, this is the check you were waiting for. Details
• An 'Overlay on videos' option appeared in Demand Gen, switched on by default. The new asset optimization adds your text assets as an overlay on top of your videos. It appears to default to on, so advertisers who do not want text burned over their creative should check their Demand Gen campaigns and turn it off individually or with 'Disable all'. Details
• OpenAI announced visual ads inside ChatGPT image generation. The new format runs alongside images people ask ChatGPT to generate, so advertisers can show what a product looks like rather than just a headline and description. Testing starts in the US later this month with a small initial group of advertisers. OpenAI said the ads are clearly labelled, kept separate from the generated image, and do not influence ChatGPT's answers. Details

Also this week

• Google documented GG_ transaction IDs as a sign your own transaction ID is not reaching it, which breaks conversion deduplication, so treat a GG_ value as a blank ID and check your data layer. Details
• Video reach campaigns gained automated bidding in beta, so you can leave Target CPM blank and let Google set bids to spend the full budget. Details
• A new Google Ads calculator turns your average profit margin into a break-even Target ROAS, showing where ROAS stops covering the margin. Details
• Experiment reporting gained an AI insights panel on the Summary tab with the experiment's goals, two key insights and three prompting questions that open Ask advisor. Details
• A beta AI campaign localization tool builds a separate translated copy of a whole Search campaign across ten target languages, leaving the original untouched. Details
• A beta 'Direct offer' asset appeared in Google Ads for building the AI Mode promotions, including optional single-use promo code uploads, and it serves only on campaigns using AI Max or text customization. Details
• Google's alcohol policy now permits 0% alcohol beverages in India, Indonesia and Egypt for advertisers who complete certification, with a separate application form per location. Details
• The YouTube Masthead will accept certified online gambling ads from October 21, extending its existing sports betting allowance. Details
• Prediction market ads are prohibited in Connecticut, effective the day Google posted it with no transition period, making it the fifth US state removed from the program. Details
• Online lottery ads will be allowed in Colombia from October 21 for operators licensed by Coljuegos who supply their CNJSA authorization and get certified. Details
• Two Merchant Center feed changes: low image quality no longer stops products from showing, though a 500 x 500 pixel minimum lands January 31, 2027, and products whose price or stock changes more than once a day may now be disapproved instead of updated. Details
• Google Analytics added a User Groups Admin API for managing user group access to properties and accounts at scale. Details
• Tag Manager's release notes confirmed gtag('config') commands now land in the dataLayer as gtag.config events, which can make tags on wildcard custom event triggers fire unexpectedly. Details
• Microsoft Advertising added messaging guidelines to its text guardrails, so you can name up to 40 themes, claims or offers for AI Max copy to emphasise or avoid, alongside 25 term exclusions. Details
• ChatGPT Ads expanded its measurement partners, adding click attribution through AppsFlyer, Triple Whale, Adjust, Kochava and others, plus full-funnel and geo-experiment partners. Details
• The Search Console performance report ran more than 64 hours behind on Sunday morning, an unusual lag for that report, with no comment from Google. Details
• The Search Console performance report country filter now accepts several countries at once and returns one combined total. Details

Took effect this week

• Oct 5: Government documents policy to require government-linked proof of authorization from October 5, 2026. Details
• Oct 5: Government documents and services ads limited to authorized providers from October 5, 2026. Details
• Oct 7: Online gambling ads disallowed in Croatia from October 7, 2026; existing certifications revoked. Details
• Oct 7: Google Ads API v22 sunset confirmed for October 7, 2026. Details

Coming up

• Oct 12: Automated promotions to switch on by default for Search and PMax campaigns on October 12, 2026. Details
• Oct 21: YouTube Masthead to accept certified online gambling ads from October 21, 2026. Details
• Oct 21: Online lottery ads to be allowed in Colombia from October 21, 2026 for CNJSA-authorized operators. Details
• Oct 30: Personalized advertising policy to allow personalized alcohol ads on YouTube where locally permitted. Details

See every change with filters, sources and effective dates at https://gadschangehistory.com. Reply to this email if you spot something we missed.

From Google Ads Change History by Brandon Mangan. Not affiliated with Google.