32Red ads censured by ASA over child-friendly content

Kindred Group’s 32Red brand has been ordered to withdraw two online ads by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) over claims they inappropriately targeted under 18s.

The paid search ads for the Jack and the Beanstalk slot, first appeared on 25 April, were displayed whenever the search term “jack and the beanstalk” was Googled.

Following complaints, the ASA challenged whether the adverts were “likely to be of particular appeal to children” and were directed at those aged below the age of 18 due to the media or medium being used.

In response, 32Red claimed the adverts were specifically targeted at Google users using search terms which corresponded to the names of 32Red games, including “Jack and the Beanstalk”.

32Red said it classified the slot as high-risk and visitors to their website would not be able to see the game listed unless they had been age-verified. However, in this instance the Jack and the Beanstalk game had been included on the 32Red website’s list of slot games in error.

Upon notification by the ASA, 32Red removed the adverts in question, checking that other high-risk games were not being actively advertised and put in place steps to ensure this did not reoccur.

The ASA acknowledged the limited use of “jack and the beanstalk” referencing within the advertising, together with the absence of any child-friendly imagery.

However, the ASA said that by using the search term rather than targeting the ads at those aged over 18, 32Red had not done enough to ensure those ads were accessed by individuals below that age.

In addition, the ASA considered that because Jack and the Beanstalk was a highly popular classic children’s fairy tale, the inclusion of it within the ad meant that the ads were likely to be of appeal to children.

The ASA determined the operator had breached CAP and BCAP codes, and said both ads must not appear again in their current form.