Bud.TV's potential appeal to underage viewers was one of the first stumbling blocks for the project.

Like the rest of the alcohol industry, A-B uses the honor system to verify that Web visitors are at least 21 years old. Visitors are asked for their birth dates at the entrance to beer sites.

Critics argued that this honor system easily allows underage children to enter.

A study made public in 2004 by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Georgetown University found that 13 percent of all in-depth visits to 55 branded-alcohol websites were by underage people.

A-B points out that a report by the Federal Trade Commission in 2003 found that technology did not permit advertisers to limit sites to legal-age visitors.

However, A-B has toughened its stance on Web access, and is using new technology to verify age.

Potential users seeking to enter Bud.TV first must register, providing a name, birth date and home ZIP code. Washington-based Aristotle Inc. will verify each person's age by immediately checking the information against databases, such as drivers license records and voter registration lists.

If Aristotle can't confirm an age of 21 or older, the person won't be allowed access to Bud.TV.

By April, the system will be introduced on all of A-B's beer-branded sites, including Budweiser.com and Budlight.com.

Bud.TV will feature "things that are edgier — things that you wouldn't see on CBS and NBC," Ponturo said. That helped convince A-B to introduce the more-stringent age-checking software.

"It's good that they've put in a stronger verification system," said David Jernigan, executive director of the marketing center at Georgetown. "It's absolutely a step in the right direction."

To read the full article, please visit the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website.