• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, October 11, 2013

Google's update to its Terms of Service will enable the company to use shared endorsements in display ads through its +1 feature and product reviews.

Resembling Facebook Sponsored Stories ads, the newly updated Google Terms of Service says names and photos shown in shared endorsements are the public profile name and photo the person chooses to use on Google+ and in recommendations. A connected page also provides directions on how to turn on or off the feature.

Facebook recently settled a class action lawsuit for $20 million because the Sponsored Stories ad unit didn't allow the social site's members to control their data. Instead, it allowed advertisers to turn user Likes into product endorsements without consumer consent. If a friend "liked" the brand Sony on Facebook, the brand could use their name and image in an ad.

Google's move to leverage user content in ad units isn't new.

Numerous advertisers such as Disney, Toyota, Johnson & Johnson, American Eagle, and Coors Light have launched campaigns in the past three months that ask consumers to generate earned media about their brand and then use them in campaigns, according to Jon Dick, director of business development at Klout.

The use of earned media as an advertising tool is something that will continue to grow, and we expect topical influence to be a key component in its success, Dick wrote in an email, but whether those brands forewarned consumers isn't clear.

Google began unifying services to combine data under one profile around 2011, suggesting it would tie together the backend of the Internet to give searches, recommendations and ad serving a common theme.

Uncheck the box and a message appears explaining "when you disable this setting, your friends will be less likely to benefit from your recommendations." Google explains that those under 18 will see shared endorsements from others, but their name and profile will not appear in shared endorsements in ads and other content.

This setting allows those using Google services to limit the use of their name and photo in shared endorsements in ads. It applies only to actions that Google displays in ads. Changing the setting does not change the way names and photos look in a shared endorsement other than display ads such as music recommendation in the Google PlayStore.