According to a recent email announcement by Yahoo! Search Marketing to all U.K. advertisers, a new change in gambling PPC advertisement policy has become effective in May 2008, that allows casinos and affiliate advertisers to issue ads which were previously prohibited. Today, gambling PPC affiliates may feature PPC ads that contain invitations for gambling, as well as the mentioning of money, bonuses and prizes that could be won through gambling. This new gambling affiliate marketing development has opened up a huge opportunity for gambling affiliates to buy traffic through Yahoo! Pay-Per-Click search marketing campaigns in the United Kingdom.

The update to Yahoo! editorial policy that allows gambling to be promoted in ads displayed through their search marketing platform is in-line with local UK legislation permitting the advertisements of gambling establishments. This is a big win for gambling affiliate marketing in the UK. Here are more details about the email sent by Yahoo!:

• Previously, gambling ad copy could not contain invitations to play or any mention of money, bonuses and prizes. Under recent UK legislation on gambling advertising, UK gambling ads may now include any or all of these. This new legislation does not however extend to gambling advertising in Northern Ireland or Republic of Ireland, and so the relaxation on ad copy restrictions applies only for advertising which is run in mainland UK.
• Advertisers are responsible for blocking any regions within the market where their ad copy is not compliant with local gambling advertising legislation. Because the laws on gambling advertising are different in Ireland and Northern Ireland, as an advertiser with gambling ads on UKIE properties, you must use your geo-targeting settings to block non-compliant ad copy in Ireland and Northern Ireland.
• The existing rules on responsible advertising continue to apply, and gambling ads may be rejected on the grounds that they:
  • Lead people to adopt styles of gambling that are unwise
  • Are socially irresponsible and/or encourage excessive gambling
  • Exploit the young, the immature or those who are mentally or socially vulnerable.
• The existing rules on location and licensing of gambling advertisers also continue to apply.

While Yahoo! takes the initiative to cash in on the lucrative gambling PPC market in the UK, search-engine giant, Google, continues to prohibit any form of gambling promotion, including play money websites and play for fun destinations. Could Yahoo! become THE gambling pay-per-click engine of choice for casino and gaming affiliates? For now it is, in the United Kingdom.