Less Transparency in New Google AdSense Ads?

The Google AdSense blog posted yesterday about ‘Extending the “Ads by Google” label to more ads‘ where they will be adding the “Ads by Google” message in an “unobtrusive” way.

You’ll soon notice a small “i” (for “information”) icon overlay in the bottom right-hand corner of these ads, which will expand when the user hovers over it. This was specially designed for rich media ads. This new message will appear on ads created by AdWords advertisers, and will show up on your website’s standard AdSense ad units.

I am all for less clutter, but with the hype about disclosure, this seems like a step back when it comes to transparency.

Then again, if Al Gore is advising Google on “search quality”, maybe Google is advising the FTC on how ads should be labeled.