Be more cautious on gambling advertising review during Covid-19 pandemic
According to local media reports, the British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) pointed out that the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) has launched a comprehensive review of e-sports gambling marketing to ensure compliance with gambling regulations. Therefore, it also warns all UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) licensees that their e-sports gambling advertisements must comply with the same management rules as other types. According to the latest research released by GambleAware, a large number of advertisements are marked as likely to target young people related to e-sports. Therefore, it is necessary for the supervisory unit to provide marketing guidance in this vertical field.
The CPA reminds licensed operators in the country to supervise the market. If marketing is through third-party social media accounts for advertising purpose, it must clearly mark that it is an advertisement. In addition, gambing advertisements are not allowed to target customers under the age of 18 through media or content, because advertisements for adults should not pose risks to children. Gambing marketing communications should also not use elements that are particularly attractive to people under the age of 18, including: cartoons, toys and influential people with influence on youth culture.
At the same time, the CAP also added that the ASA ruled that if a particularly attractive advertisement is targeted (such as only sending emails to registered users who have passed age verification), it will not violate the regulations. However, if advertising is spread through social media, it is difficult to obtain such verification. The CAP reminds operators that, except on their websites, people under the age of 25 must not play an important role in gambling advertisement. At the same time, this rule also applies to e-sports players, because most of this group is under 25 years old. In addition, even if the space provided on social media channels is limited, the terms and conditions of the bonus offers must be clearly marked.
CAP exemplifies that Twitter allows users to post images and limits the number of text symbols for tweets. It recommends that advertisers can take advantage of all the options available on the platform to cover important terms and restrictions. Also in GambleAware’s research, it was found that 96% of participants aged 11 to 24 had been exposed to gambling marketing information in March. The report also said that this early contact will be a key factor in determining whether young people may get involved in gambling in the future. If they have a close friend or caregiver involved in the gambling, then they are six times more likely to become gamblers than a person without such contact.
