HEARD ON THE BEAT / BUZZ FROM THE BUSINESS WORLD - Los Angeles Times
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Technology and the Internet

HEARD ON THE BEAT / BUZZ FROM THE BUSINESS WORLD

By DAVAN MAHARAJ, legal business reporter
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A Banner Decision? Playboy Enterprises Inc. is suing Internet search engine Excite Inc. because banner advertisements for “hard-core pornography” automatically appear when computer users type “Playboy” or “Playmate” as keywords.

But so far the Bunny empire has taken no legal action against AltaVista, where banner ads for software that blocks children’s access to adult Web sites pop up when the same keywords are used. A Playboy attorney declined to comment, but other lawyers said Playboy won’t win many fans if it takes similar action against AltaVista.

“It just wouldn’t look good for Playboy to sue anyone for advertising software that protects children from pornography,” one said.

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Technology and the Internet
Davan Maharaj

As editor of the Los Angeles Times Media Group from 2011-17, Davan Maharaj oversaw the largest daily newsgathering organization in the West.

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