Drinks manufacturers will be raising a glass to Google this Christmas, after the search giant revealed it is to allow spirit brands to use its internet marketing tool AdWords.

Starting from the New Year, drinks companies will be able to indulge in a spot of search engine marketing, meaning anyone with a Hogmanay hangover might want to avoid searching online for a short period.

There are conditions to the move, however - the online marketing will not be able to promote actual sales.

The move appeared popular within the drink industry - Bacardi Global Brands digital marketing manager Tom Jeffries told New Media Age: "To be allowed to run AdWords advertising on Google.com is a big opportunity for us, so we will be looking to put money behind it."

It follows on from an earlier announcement in October that the company was to allow bookmakers and online casinos to advertise using the search engine.

This has raised speculation that Google may be struggling to sell as many adverts as it used to - but is this true?

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