Microsoft has announced some important changes to its Bing weapons ads policy this week. Starting July 1, 2018 ads for recreational guns such as “bb guns, paintball guns, or air rifles” will no longer be accepted on the search engine, and the new policy will also apply to ads for accessories that can be attached to weapons to aid in the reloading process and more (via Search Engine Land).
Ads featuring weapons, ammunition and more were already disallowed on Bing, and the company says that this policy change has been done for consistency:
This change will also help reduce confusion about products advertised. Many of the recreational type guns like air rifles look like real guns and consumers may be led to click on offers that are different than their expectations. Finally, this change responds to the feedback from Bing Ads publishers who have similar policies in place.
To be clear, ads for accessories that cannot be attached to weapons such as holsters, gun safes or other safety equipment will still be allowed on Bing. You can learn more about the policy changes on the Bing Ads website.
