In a surprising move, the FTC announced guidelines for bloggers to disclose payments from ad companies and celebrities will be held to account for promotions. This is huge win for average consumers who often research online for product reviews. There are many sites out there who appear to be offering genuine and unbiased product reviews when in fact they are receiving the products for free from the advertisers. In some cases, they may even be compensated for their reviews.

The FTC said that endorsements on blogs appear to be “word of mouth,” but that is not always the case — sometimes companies create their own blogs that can give the aura of objectivity.

While there is already an existing rule already states product reviewers must reveal any connection they have with advertisers, this rule now extends to bloggers. The existing rules carry a fine as high as $11,000 if product endorsers and reviewers don’t comply.

Funny thing is what would FTC define as a blogger or a blog? Is a Facebook or MySpace account considered a blog? What about Twitter page? So the next time a celebrity tweets about a product, he or she better disclose how the product was given to him or her for free. Good luck trying to fit that under 140 characters.

FTC’s effort could be the beginning of a larger attempt for the government to regulate the Internet. But enforcement could prove difficult. FTC won’t be hiring new personnel to monitor blogs. Instead, the FTC said it is more likely to go after advertisers rather than bloggers to ensure ad companies are giving product reviewers proper instructions about disclosure compliance.