Slow LAN menu

Hello.
Recently (a couple of months or so), when I start Civ IV, go to "Multiplayer" menu and then click on "LAN Games", it tooks a lot of time to reach the LAN Lobby (about 20 seconds). This happens both on my pc and on the one from my girlfriend. I didn't change anything about Civ. In past, it was immediate to reach the LAN Lobby.
What could it be, that slows down the menu so much?
Thank you very much.

It has to do with Gamespy taking their servers offline. You can eliminate unnecessary calls to those servers by updating your system's HOSTS file. See details in the first post of this thread: http://realmsbeyond.net/forums/showthread.php?tid=7123