WEB ENGINE-STOP GAMBLING
Google and Yahoo, two of the most widely used Web search engines, have decided to stop running advertisements for online casinos, a shift that could thwart the growth of Internet casino gambling.
The move, which the companies said would take effect by the end of April, comes as federal prosecutors are threatening action against American companies that do business with Internet casinos that are based abroad. The prosecutors are arguing that the American companies are ''aiding and abetting'' offshore Internet casinos, whose operations are illegal in the United States. Prosecutors started a grand jury investigation last year, issuing subpoenas to American broadcasters, publishers and Web sites that run advertisements for online casinos.
Google executives, however, said Friday that they would stop running Internet gambling advertisements in all markets. A spokesman for Google, David Krane, said the policy change was part of an effort to ''reflect the growth of our company and ensure we provide the best search experience for our users and advertisers.''
A spokeswoman for Lycos, another large search engine, also said Friday that the company had decided in the last few months to stop running gambling advertisements but declined to give details on when the company stopped publishing the ads or why it had made the decision. Search engine companies, broadcasters and experts who follow the Internet gambling industry said the loss of advertising was not big enough to make a major difference to the profits of American broadcasters and publishers.
But some industry experts said the policy change could have a big impact on the online casinos and their ability to reach out to customers. The new policies angered some representatives of the Internet gambling industry who contend the search engine providers were bullied by prosecutors wielding an untested legal theory. Although operating an online casino is illegal, state laws vary as to whether it is illegal for an individual to place a bet. In New York, for example, it is not a crime to place a bet over the Internet, state prosecutors said.
Critics of the grand jury investigation, including several legal specialists, said that American companies were within their free speech rights to publish online casino and online bookmaker advertisements because they were disseminating information.