The closer YouTube gets to the business of illegal gambling videos, the less protection it may have from lawsuits, the European Union’s top court ruled Thursday.
Google is challenging a 750,000-euro (about $860,000) fine imposed by Italy’s communications regulator, AGCOM, under the country’s 2018 ban on virtually all direct and indirect gambling advertising. The penalty followed claims that YouTube creators used five channels to promote gambling websites and encouraged viewers of any age to submit videos of their winnings in exchange for cash rewards. Along with the fine, the regulator ordered Google to remove 630 videos and similar content.
Google, meanwhile, argues that while gambling itself falls outside the EU’s e-commerce rules, platforms hosting gambling advertisements do not.
