Online Blackjack
Players can use their virtual EC currency to play against the developer. And, if you don't have enough credits, you can buy more from Entrecard. That's outright gambling. And,
Online Gambling is Illegal in the United States!
After thinking about this, I realized that every U.S. EC member is at risk of being banned from Google and other providers.
One cannot advertise or display ads for the purpose of driving visitors to an online gambling site. Violation of such action can result in having your site: removed for Blogger, delisted in the various search engines, Adsense & Adwords termination, perhaps arrest, fines and jail.
Therefore, I removed all Entrecard Widgets this morning from all my sites to avoid being an accomplice to such actions.
And, I encourage all U.S. Entrecard members to remove your Entrecard Widgets ASAP to avoid being drawn into the potentially criminal actions of EC. Ignorance of such activity is not a viable defense.
EC Screen Shot
Game Lead-in Page Screenshot
While I don't know what the final implications of Entrecard's intention to promote online gambling will be, I believe it is important for all Entrecard members to understand the consequences of knowingly driving traffic to an online gambling site.
Better Safe than Sorry
JL............
Wouldn't it be adequate to deny the gambling ad? I'm not sure how the U.S. law differs from the U.K. Have you pointed out the problem to Entrecard?
ReplyDeleteIt's strange how Entrecard doesn't allow gambling ads but happily promotes this. Shouldn't there be an age limit too?
I don't believe that denying the ad would be sufficient, because the Entrecard site can be reached by any EC widget.
ReplyDeleteThen, once on the Entrecard site, the user is offered the opportunity to gamble. Thus, we would be complicit in driving traffic to the banned product.
The U.S. laws changed dramatically a couple of years ago and now bans all forms of online gambling. Fines, penalties, & punishment are harsh. And, age doesn't matter. The product is illegal here. This differs substantially from the UK, Canada, and other places where online gambling is permitted.
I haven't informed EC. They should know what the laws are, especially since they are a U.S. based operation. Further, Google expects all their publishers & advertisers to obey their policies at all times. Offering gambling (for credits or money) is a no no.
So, I'm playing it safe and have removed the widgets before I get in trouble; or before they are forced to shut down.
I have informed them, because in my country the laws are the same.
ReplyDeleteLaane,
ReplyDeleteGood work. It's important for EC to understand that online gambling laws are not limited only to the U.S.
I've always loved Entrecard. I think they have a great product & provide a valuable service to our blogging community.
But, since my site & blogs are all displaying Adsense Ads, it's more important for me to obey their policies.
I'm not happy with being placed in a position to make a choice, but I see they're still pushing Blackjack. Oh well.
I'm glad I got out of there when I did. This is important for every blogger who still has EC.
ReplyDeleteHello Buraot! I removed my EC drop widget from my 2 blogs...and as a result EC dismembered me also.:)
ReplyDeleteBtw, how are you earning from your blog? Sa AdSense lang ba o may iba pa?
I removed all of my blogs from EC over a year ago. There are several ads over there that could cause trouble with Adsense if you allow them to run. This lastest gambling issue is bound to cause problems with Adsense. However it could end up causing significant problems with your ISP if in a country where online gambling is illegal. Running those types of ads would be against the ISP TOS so could cost you your account. There may also be legal ramifications.
ReplyDeleteYou would think it would be in EC's best interest to seek legal advice themselves given they are a US company and online gambling is illegal in the US. Given the number of disgruntled former members they have, this is not going to end well for them!
Anti Aging,
ReplyDeleteJust saw this in one of the links and wanna say that the author of this site is not me (pardon to blogster).
Just wanna clear that up.
But to your question, I mostly earn from adsense.
Buraot,
ReplyDeleteThanks for clearing that up. I figured the comment wasn't for me, so I posted it hoping that you would respond.
JL...........