This excellent post by Alex Tabarrok ‘Google Bans Bail Bond Ads, Invites Regulation‘ shows how dominating internet companies can take decisions that look simple but have substantial political background.
Bail bond is a way to escape actual jail in the US. Google is banning ads for bail bond because it considers that it targets vulnerable people and is de-facto discriminating. However, some authors consider that they are a way to give a chance of support and advice to people that couldn’t otherwise afford it.
I have no opinion on the matter except that as all complex issues, there are several sides to it and the situation is more complex than people often believe. And by taking single sided decisions on their own, internet giants are avoiding debate on those issues while influencing the life of many people. Google is indeed taking a simplistic view: where is the data?
As the paper concludes, Google and the others really invite some kind of regulation of their activities to be implemented!
