Google’s DoubleClick for Publishers ad server stopped functioning on Wednesday. The shutdown eliminated revenue-generating advertising from millions of websites.
To make matters worse, the glitch caused some websites, such as Forbes.com, to freeze because interstitial ads failed to load.
Sari Ancel, technical consultant at Google, posted this confirmation in a private DFP Google+ community:
"We are currently experiencing issues which are preventing ads from serving. Our technology teams are currently working to restore service as quickly as possible," he wrote. "At this time, we do not have an estimate for when this issue will be resolved. But I will update here as soon as I have more info."
Google said the problem was solved as of 11:30 am EST on Wednesday.
Business Insider reported that Google account managers contacted customers confirming a "P0 critical issue" — a top-priority problem.
This is not the first time Google has had trouble with DoubleClick. In September, DoubleClick ad servers exposed millions of users to malware.
The last time DoubleClick shut down was March 2013, eliminating ads across the Web for several hours.
This story first appeared on campaignlive.com.
