SmartyPants
06-16-2008, 02:53 PM
We all know that Google prohibits certain types of site, including online gambling sites such as the one I work for, smartlivecasino.com.
So I was very intrigued to find several of my company's competitors apparently doing very well in the sponsored link stakes. "Yes," I thought. "We'll have some of that!"
However, being a good boy I thought I'd write to Google to see if they had changed their policy on on-line gambling. "No," came the reply from the AdWords team based in Dublin: "I assure you that Google does not permit the promotion of online gambling. I hope this addresses your concern."
"Fair enough," I thought, especially when the competitors' sponsor links also started to disappear the following day.
Well now they're coming back, even though, Google insist, they are still banned.
I sent some URLs to Google and they wrote back to say that the sites covered were actually "Geographic Entities" and therefore still legal. They say that when they click the sponsors links at the Google Search Page in question (http://www.google.co.uk/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=roulette+london&btnG=Google+Search&meta=), they get a "Geo" site: Yet every time I click on these ads I get redirected (often in more than one stage) to an online gambling site - direct competition to us.
I reckon these guys are using a clever script to redirect the page, depending on the ip address of the clicker or some such trickery: so Google in Dublin see one thing, I see another. Whatever, this sort of thing is also banned by Google.
Problem is, Google now see to have me on ignore: and it's very hard to have faith in Google when they simply don't seem to listen. After all, I'm not especially keen to "clean up" Google: I'd much rather have some of the action myself!
My contention is this: if online gambling is not allowed, it shouldn't be allowed for ANYONE. If it is (or if Google are simply turning a blind eye and cashing the cheques) tell me how and I'll get my bosses at Smart Live to pay-up.
So I was very intrigued to find several of my company's competitors apparently doing very well in the sponsored link stakes. "Yes," I thought. "We'll have some of that!"
However, being a good boy I thought I'd write to Google to see if they had changed their policy on on-line gambling. "No," came the reply from the AdWords team based in Dublin: "I assure you that Google does not permit the promotion of online gambling. I hope this addresses your concern."
"Fair enough," I thought, especially when the competitors' sponsor links also started to disappear the following day.
Well now they're coming back, even though, Google insist, they are still banned.
I sent some URLs to Google and they wrote back to say that the sites covered were actually "Geographic Entities" and therefore still legal. They say that when they click the sponsors links at the Google Search Page in question (http://www.google.co.uk/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=roulette+london&btnG=Google+Search&meta=), they get a "Geo" site: Yet every time I click on these ads I get redirected (often in more than one stage) to an online gambling site - direct competition to us.
I reckon these guys are using a clever script to redirect the page, depending on the ip address of the clicker or some such trickery: so Google in Dublin see one thing, I see another. Whatever, this sort of thing is also banned by Google.
Problem is, Google now see to have me on ignore: and it's very hard to have faith in Google when they simply don't seem to listen. After all, I'm not especially keen to "clean up" Google: I'd much rather have some of the action myself!
My contention is this: if online gambling is not allowed, it shouldn't be allowed for ANYONE. If it is (or if Google are simply turning a blind eye and cashing the cheques) tell me how and I'll get my bosses at Smart Live to pay-up.