Toughening the Online Casino Standards
Internet gambling companies in the UK knew that the 2005 Gambling Act
restrictions and regulations would be a double edged sword in many cases.
Although the UK liberalized the country’s online casino gambling regulations,
they also put in place a very strict Gambling Commission to oversee
implementation and adherence to the new legislation and regulations. Part of the
more liberalized UK gambling market comes in the form of online casinos having
increased advertising privileges in the European market – but with that comes
the oversight of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The ASA has made headlines over the past several months because of the
Association’s ban of several major advertising campaigns from respected online
casino gambling companies. The advertisements are regulated to ensure that they
do not appeal to minors, run within their specified time frames and do not
encourage addictive online casino gambling.
The latest banned ad from the ASA is an ad for Wink Bingo – an online casino
bingo gambling site that has not previously experienced the controversy of an
ASA investigation. The advertisement was designed to portray a “cheeky,
irreverent, sassy and naughty” situation of a heightened reality. The ad
basically showed a maternity nurse ignoring a woman giving birth to instead
gamble on the Wink Bingo site.
The ASA acknowledged that the tone of the advertisement was entirely humorous
and funny, but noted that the situation, no matter how exaggerated and humorous
did show an irresponsible gambling habit – the nurse was shirking her duties and
her profession to indulge in online casino bingo gambling. |