Chinese search engine cleared on internet gambling advertising charges

The Beijing Cyberspace Administration has concluded its investigation into the appearance of online gambling advertisements on the Baidu search engine (see previous reports) and on Thursday issued a statement on the issue.

The Administration accepted that there was no unlawful intention on the part of Baidu, but ordered the company to improve the assessment of its advertising business and marketing service agents and tighten up on “poor management” of marketing partners, security and monitoring.

Baidu escaped fines and penalties, but must identify the staff responsible for the “error” and pursue legal liability. The Administration also ordered the company to immediately stop partnering with problematic marketing agents, to improve assessments of its advertising services, and to be more responsive to public complaints.

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