Industry questions GambleAware approach following ad ban
EGR Intel sources concerned about the group’s ability to deliver effective advertising and spend £8m budget "wisely”
Gambling operators have questioned the effectiveness of GambleAware, after the responsible gambling group saw its latest ad campaign banned for being “highly distressing”.
The ad, launched in March, shows a girl sitting in her bedroom while an older man sits on a desk in the corner of the room saying in a sinister fashion: “What is it? What is it? It’s just a bit of fun. It’s just a bit of fun. Remember that rush. The best feeling you’ve ever had.”
The man is meant to represent the girl’s subconscious willing her to gamble, but viewers complained he appeared “predatory and sexually abusive”.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) agreed, ruling the ad should not be shown again because it contained “sexually coercive and abusive scenarios that victims of abuse would find highly distressing and traumatic”.
“We did not consider that the advertiser’s intention justified the distress experienced by viewers generally, and the distress caused to this vulnerable group in particular,” the ASA explained.
And a representative of the gambling industry, which funds GambleAware, said many had “serious concerns” about the charity’s current approach to tackling gambling-related harm.
“We question GambleAware’s ability to deliver effective advertising and spend wisely,” one source told EGR Intel.
GambleAware raised £8m last year from charitable contributions from the gambling industry.