The intent, says a Google spokesperson, is to give users more information: “As part of our ongoing efforts to show ads that are relevant and informative, we are including more information about why users are seeing certain search ads.”

If I know Google, this effort at transparency is also meant to spur click-through rates — and has likely done so in extensive testing. Perhaps users are more likely to click when they understand better why they’re getting the ads they’re getting.

Google already provides information on why certain ads appear if users click on “Why These Ads?” at the top right of the yellow ad block, but this text provides the information at a glance….More at “Ads Related To…” Text Officially Rolls Out On AdWords’ Top Ad Block