Google received the highest approval, from the Queen, to allow companies to buy sponsored links for the online gambling in UK. Google stopped advertising online gambling in the search results pages in 2004 after the US Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) and the express claim of the US addressed to the major search engines (Google, Yahoo!, MSN) when these SE were charged together $31.5m because they accepted online ads promoting illegal gambling, during the last ten years.

The advertisers using this service will have to be regulated in Britain or Europe and would have to have internet links to organisations helping problem gamblers.

“We’ve decided to amend our policy to allow text ads to appear against search queries related to gambling in Great Britain. We hope this will enhance the search experience for users and help advertisers connect with interested consumers. Gambling ads will automatically be classified as Non-Family Safe which means they will not show on any search where the user has applied the Safe Search filter.“, says James Cashmore, Head of Technology, Industry Markets Group, Google UK.

Yahoo! changes his terms of service regarding the gambling  ads, for the UK advertisers. This is due to the change in UK legislation for gambling advertising, that is now less restrictive.

AccuraCast says that Yahoo! sent an email to its UK clients telling them that under recent UK legislation on gambling advertising, UK gambling ads may now include invitations to play or any mention of money, bonuses and prizes.

Yahoo Search Marketing have partnered recently with Media Corporation, an Internet media firm which owns onthebox.com, gambling.com and sport.co.uk, to provide search results and advertising across Media Corp’s extensive publishing network.

All the three companies have agreed to pay a total of $31.5m (£15.7m) to settle claims that they accepted online ads promoting illegal gambling, during the last ten years.

Microsoft has to pay $21m, part of it as a charitable donation to support exploited children ($4.5m to the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC) to establish a fund to assist ICMEC with its national and international mission), and another part, $9m, for an ad campaign against the online gambling

Yahoo to pay $3m and to fund an $4.5m ad campaign against the online gambling.

Google has to pay $3m.

All the three companies say that they stopped the online gambling advertising some years ago.

In accordance with the News Release,

“These sums add to the over $40 million in forfeitures and back taxes this office has already recovered in recent years from operators of these remote-control illegal gambling enterprises,” said Hanaway. “Honest taxpayers and gambling industry personnel who do follow the law suffer from those who promote illegal online behavior.”

“Illegal internet gaming operations continue to be areas of IRS compliance concern,” stated James D. Vickery, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “CI will continue to play an enforcement role in the illegal gaming industry and to support regulatory and legislative initiatives aimed at eliminating an environment conducive to illegal gambling.”