A 12-year-old boy from Spain received a €100,000 bill after confusing Google AdWords with Google AdSense when he wanted to make money from advertisements on his YouTube channel.
José Javier and his friend, who run a YouTube channel for their local band, aimed to “get rich and buy a mansion” by signing up for Google AdSense adverts on their videos, before being hit with a six-figure bill for the adverts they had placed instead.
“My son did not know what he did. Now [he] has become the most famous [at] high school and his mother goes on television,” said the boy’s father, who had prepared a lawyer for the case before Google made their statement. “I tell him if he knows the possible consequences of what he has done, but apparently does not realize [what’s] going to happen. We are more realistic.”
Google AdSense allows users to monetize their content, including YouTube videos and websites, while AdWords allows users to advertise their own content or product around the internet.
“[We] will proceed to cancel the outstanding balance of AdWords,” said Google in a statement, acknowledging that the purchase had been made by mistake.
“Many online services, including Google AdWords, have age restrictions on use,” they continued, before providing a link to their family safety center.
Charlie Nash is a reporter for Breitbart Tech. You can follow him on Twitter @MrNashington or like his page at Facebook.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.