Google reveals a financial secret, divulges commission rates for ads off its website

Google opens up, divulges its ad commission rates

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google has finally revealed one of its financial secrets. It is spelling how it splits the money with other websites that show its online ads.

The Internet search leader’s partners get 68 percent of the revenue from ads placed alongside articles and other content on Web pages. Websites keep 51 percent of the revenue from Google’s ads shown next to search results. The breakdown appeared Monday on one of Google’s blogs.

Google has always said its advertising partners keep most of the revenue, but has faced criticism for not being more specific about the commission rates.

Most of the ads that Google sells appear next to its own search engine and other services that it owns. The company keeps all that revenue.