Well, it isn’t very practical to chase down every small portal owner and try to close them down without any law to back it.
That would likely result in a class action suit – the communal loss of revenue would be staggering and such a suit will make the politicians think twice.
Given a class action suit by affiliates, some of the other injured businesses may join at that time. Or quietly help finance it.
My bet is that the DOJ will continue to try to close down major advertising vehicles and try to put us out of business that way.
The “trickle down effect”.
They are not able to pass a law through congress, and they are now counting on fear to achieve their goals.
The current actions are really not very surprising or earth shaking – we saw the beginning of this crusade with the control over credit cards (the government telling its people how they can or cannot spend their own hard earned money!)
Then came paypal and now the PPCs.
It is too bad for American citizens, as this very large volume business will undoubtedly move to another country. Regulated and taxed, it would bring in lots of revenue.
I don’t quite think that free listings will disappear for us – but I think they will be blockable by the user like porn.
Alcohol, gambling and prostitution – you can’t prohibit them and should regulate them. It is the only rational thing to do.