Google began testing the ads in the Google app's discovery feed – and then in the Google feed – at about the same level last year, with advertisements associated with unsent sponsored content. The test was not popular; the proximity of the streams with the home screens of many phones has made the ads particularly unwelcome. But it was apparently a hit with advertisers because Google announced that these ads would be the norm this year.

Most of the feed ads will be part of two new categories of ads introduced by Google, called Discovery and Gallery ads. The new types of ads will appear not only in Discover, but also in sites such as YouTube, Google Images and the Promotions and Social Media tabs of Gmail. You will start seeing these ads throughout the year, starting today. Existing ads are also making their way into Discover.

Nomenclature is only really important for advertisers. For users, it is obvious that we will see more ads in more places. It's unpleasant, but not surprising: Google sells advertising space in front of our eyes, after all.