According to Search Engine Watch, Google’s Spam Czar Matt Cutts says Google will punish bloggers who don’t use the no follow tag on the links included in paid posts.
I interpret this move as Google’s way of making sure bloggers are open about what links and content (for things like product reviews) they were paid to include.
This will surely have wide ranging implications on the SEO of blogs and how marketing agencies will use bloggers to promote their clients’ products and services.
My only hope is that Google will clearly clarify what they define as a paid link. For example, if a blogger recieves a tee-shirt for blogging about a product, are links they include considered “paid” ?
I also wonder how will Google determine if a link was paid?
