A link relationship attribute identifying advertisements, paid sponsorships, or compensated placements.
The sponsored relationship value identifies an HTML link associated with advertising, sponsorship or another compensated placement. It qualifies the relationship in the markup. It does not change the destination into a different page or necessarily change how the link looks to a visitor.
Google recommends sponsored for paid placements and also accepts nofollow for that purpose. The important point is that a commercial relationship should not be presented to search systems as an ordinary independent editorial link. Appropriate markup and a clear explanation for readers serve different audiences; one should not be assumed to replace the other.
For a business buying visibility, the question should be whether the advertisement reaches a relevant audience and communicates accurately. A publisher’s refusal to provide an unqualified link does not make a legitimate sponsorship useless. Conversely, a promise of hidden paid links and guaranteed rankings deserves scrutiny rather than being treated as an extra benefit.
Takeaway: Evaluate paid placements for their genuine advertising or partnership value, and ensure the link relationship is represented accurately. Do not pay extra to conceal sponsorship from search engines.
Example
A kitchen supplier sponsors a trade newsletter’s online event page. The page identifies the sponsorship for readers, and the website qualifies the supplier link appropriately. The supplier judges the arrangement by its audience and agreed deliverables, not by whether the publisher will disguise the link as an independent recommendation.
What to check
Include the intended link relationship in the placement agreement and check the published implementation. If a content-management system offers only a generic link switch, ask the publisher which actual HTML value it produces. Keep editorial references and paid placements distinct in reporting.
For more detail, see Google outbound link qualification.