ASA on how it plans to keep gambling ads in check

With freedom comes responsibility. I think that’s true of gambling advertising where operators’ freedom to advertise is increasingly dependent on their willingness to promote themselves responsibly; not just to the 48% of Brits that gamble every month, but also to those that don’t gamble or shouldn’t gamble because they’re too young or vulnerable in other ways.

At the ASA and CAP, we’ve made the case for responsible advertising for over 50 years because it’s demonstrably good for people, business and society. That’s why we set and enforce the highest standards to ensure ads don’t mislead, harm or offend their audience, and why we’re not afraid to call out sectors – like gambling – that must do more to uphold their advertising responsibilities and protect the vulnerable. And, we’re not the only ones challenging the sector to raise its game.

Sarah Harrison, CEO of the Gambling Commission, recently warned of a “tipping point”. She said gambling operators’ failure to commit to a safer future for consumers would put their industry in peril, including their advertising freedoms.

The Gambling Act 2005 ushered in a new era, where gambling is now recognised as a legitimate leisure activity, which can be promoted subject to restrictions.

For some reasons, including ethical standpoints, not everyone is supportive of this more liberalised environment. We frequently hear from politicians about the perceived harms of gambling and its advertising. But, we rarely hear about the merits of appropriately regulated gambling ads. I’ll venture a few: it stimulates competition, which is generally recognised as a good thing for consumers, drives innovation and helps to fund culture, media and sport which many of us enjoy.

For the greater good

It’s not my role to set the legal framework for gambling advertising, but it is my role, however, to help set and enforce the highest standards for responsible gambling ads taking into account the best available evidence.

That evidence indicates CAP’s advertising rules are in the right place. Gambling ads cannot be scheduled or placed in media targeted at under 18s, and the content of gambling ads must not exploit people’s vulnerabilities. For example, it’s completely unacceptable for an ad to present gambling as a solution to financial concerns, a means to enhance one’s self-esteem or as taking priority in life.

It’s also our role to take action when we see patterns of non-compliance that fail the public and damage the sector’s reputation. Currently we see this in relation to: misleading introductory offers, with ads failing to qualify headline promotions; social media and affiliate advertising, with a far more casual approach to compliance generally, including the requirement that ads must be obviously identifiable as such; and ads that appeal particularly to under 18s, especially freely accessible games on operators’ websites.

The ASA acts quickly and robustly to ban gambling operators that fail to comply with the rules; last year we received 1,804 complaints about 730 gambling ads, upholding 71 ads as breaches of UK Advertising Codes. CAP has also produced gambling-related guidance on introductory offers, affiliate advertising, and particular appeal to under 18s, and held seminars and webinars to leave the sector in no doubt about its responsibilities under the Codes.

Harrison also called on leaders of the gambling industry to set the tone and drive the action needed for fairer and safer gambling.

I know advertising isn’t the whole picture here, but it’s a window into the world of gambling, and as such it plays a significant role in shaping societal views on gambling itself. Gambling operators would do well to make sure the window is squeaky clean.

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Shahriar Coupal is the director of CAP and BCAP at the Advertising Standards Authority, having worked with the regulatory body that deals with gambling advertising since 2005.