Internet Giants Pay Fine for Online Gambling

January 7, 2008

The three big names in search engines and internet resources, Microsoft, Google and Yahoo have agreed to pay the US government a fine regarding their involvement in online gambling promotions. With the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, or UIGEA, the United States has decided to go after anyone that they deem accountable for online gambling.

They accused the three companies of promoting online gambling back to 1997, and they agreed to pay a total of 31.5 million to settle the charges. They were all accused of accepting payments from online gambling companies to advertise their sites.

Microsoft has to pay the lion’s share of the deal, with their settlement totaling $21 million. $4.5 million of that will go to the United States, and $7.5 million will go to the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children. They are also going to provide a marketing campaign aimed at children and young adults that warns them that online gambling is illegal and against the law. Microsoft did not admit fault in settling the case.

Google and Yahoo are paying significantly less than Microsoft, and neither one has admitted the allegations either. Google has to pay $3 million to the United States, and Yahoo has to pay $7.5 million. They have also agreed to fund online PSAs discouraging online gambling to all.

According to US Attorney Catherine Hanaway we have all suffered from the wrongdoings of the three companies. With their “promoting illegal online behavior” they have hurt us all. They could have been prosecuted under the Federal Wire Wager Act, but settled instead.




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