Regulators are investigating stealth banner ads for online gambling that show up only at night on Chinese search engine Baidu, in the second advertising scandal this year to engulf China’s alternative to Google.
The Beijing News alleged online gambling sites would register corporate accounts on Baidu through third-party advertising agencies, spoofing real companies that did not hold accounts with the search engine. They would then post ads that would appear only at night.
The Cyber Administration of China said it would investigate the matter and publish its findings “in due course”. In May, regulators vowed to crack down on misleading medical advertisements, in a case also involving Baidu.