Marketing regulation Archives

February 27, 2024

Netherlands regulator KSA presents 2024 supervisory agenda

The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the gambling regulator in the Netherlands, has presented its supervisory agenda for 2024, citing four areas of focus.

Looking to achieve its mission of “safe gaming”, the KSA says it will increase its protection of vulnerable players in the Netherlands by looking to prevent addiction. The country took measures to do this in 2023, including the introduction of a ban on most forms of advertising.

The KSA is also looking to combat illegal online offerings, aiming for at least 90% of players to gamble with legal providers in the Netherlands. In a December article for iGB, Yield Sec chief executive Ismail Vali noted how the KSA’s current approach appeared to lack clear success in actual enforcement terms.

The KSA is vowing to further support partners, including the police and tax authorities, on investigations in the physical domain. The regulator hopes this will lead to less “undermining” between different organisations.

The KSA’s final area of emphasis is..

February 19, 2024

Brazil ban on celebrity sports betting ads to be considered

A potential ban in Brazil on celebrities being used in betting advertising is ready to be included on the senate’s agenda in 2024.

Brazil is expected to finally have a regulated sports betting market in 2024. This is after Brazil’s chamber of deputies voted to approve Bill 3,626/2023 in December. There have been plenty of ups and downs and the topic of advertising is still proving contentious in the country.

Bill 3,405/2023 seeks to prohibit the use of celebrities in sports betting advertising, with Senator Eduardo Girao, who has long been against gambling in Brazil, presenting amendments that would ban anyone considered to have influence being involved in marketing of gambling.

In Girao’s view, Bill 3,405/2023 would protect Brazilian citizens from the risks of gambling harms, both emotional and financial.

Similar advertising bans worldwide

sports betting advertising is coming increasingly under fire

In August 2023, Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario announced a ban on athl..

January 10, 2024

Road to ICE 2024: Sports betting advertising coming under fire

On the road to ICE, iGB will prep you for the biggest show of 2024 with this new series covering the latest developments since 2023's show.

2024 is set to be an intriguing year for sports betting, particularly when it comes to advertising, where operators’ marketing is set to come under more scrutiny than ever before.

This will be particularly prominent in the United Kingdom. The culture, media and sport (CMS) committee recently called for a reduction in sports betting advertising to protect children.

The white paper, published in April 2023, intended to outline how gambling should be regulated in the UK. However, it received criticism for its lack of measures on how to tackle advertising. The CMS committee is pushing for more to be done in 2024 than was outlined in the white paper.

Pressure to reduce sports betting advertising could also prove a common theme across Europe this year. France, Belgium and the Netherlands all took steps in 2023 to reduce the amount of visible gam..

December 11, 2023

FanDuel lobbied against New York rules on advertising near colleges

FanDuel Group lobbied against rules that prohibit advertising sports betting near colleges and universities in the state, according to unredacted documents released by the New York State registrar.

Updated rules on sports betting in New York were introduced in October. This came after the New York State registrar considered opinion from various licensees, including Flutter Entertainment-owned FanDuel.

The ban on betting adverts near education establishments is now in place. However, state registrar documents now show that FanDuel voiced its opposition to such a move.

NEW YORK STATE REGISTRAR DOCUMENTS SHOW FANDUEL LOBBIED AGAINST ADVERTISING NEAR COLLEGES

Dated 18 October, the document said FanDuel objects to a ban on adverts in the “area of a college or university campus”. This, the document says, may be interpreted to “include unaffiliated residential and commercial areas that border a college or university campus”.

However, the New York State Gaming Commission disagreed. The r..

October 19, 2023

Netherlands’ NGR up 85% in 2022

The Netherlands' licensed gaming market generated €3.4bn (£2.95bn/$3.59bn) in net gaming revenue (NGR) in 2022, according to a report from regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA).

The report is based on 2022 only, as it was the first full calendar year for the Netherlands’ online gambling market.

The country’s market officially opened in October 2021, following the passage and ratification of the much-delayed Remote Gambling Act (KOA). This month marks two years since the market became live. NGR comprises of deposits minus prizes paid out.

NGR for 2022 was up by 85.0% from €2.0bn in 2021. KSA noted that this was due to an increase in both online gambling and land-based play, particularly as Covid-19 pandemic restrictions lifted. Land-based venues were closed in the Netherlands until 25 January 2022, with restrictions still applying until 25 February 2022.

Spending on gambling and advertising

Online casino was one of the Netherlands’ smaller markets in 2022, behind lotteries and l..

July 11, 2023

Episode 19: Looking at Ontario’s legal gaming market with Paul Burns

Brendan Bussmann and Brandt Iden dive headfirst into Canada’s only open betting and gaming market with Paul Burns of the Canadian Gaming Association (CGA) in episode 19 of the World Series of Politics.

Paul shares his thoughts on the early stages of Ontario’s regulated market, pointing out that a strong channelisation rate suggests the Canadian province is making a successful leap from a grey to white market.

This, he explains, has levelled the field when it comes to advertising. That hasn’t prevented the naysayers from massing, however.

One of the opposition parties in the Ontario parliament has put forward a bill to ban gambling advertising – even though gaming only accounts for 3% of total ads shown in the country.

Listen to the World Series of Politics on Apple Podcasts

Looking forward, Burns assesses the future of Canadian gaming, examining the potential of sports betting and igaming in Ontario and beyond. With a foundation of responsible gaming standards and a commitment ..

February 23, 2023

Massachusetts overturns affiliate ban in regulation

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) has announced that it will overturn the ban on affiliates that was created in the state’s regulation.

In its open meeting today (23 February), the MCG agreed to replace the existing language in its regulation, which currently bans affiliates from the market by prohibiting cost per acquisition (CPA) and revenue share agreements.

The MGC went on to confirm that they have been working on amendments to the regulations of both licensing for sports wagering vendors as well as advertising for sports wagering advertising.

These amendments are currently still a period of consultation and will be voted on during an open meeting on 23 March 2023.

Under regulation 205 CMR 256, subsection 256.01 (3) the law currently reads: “No sports wagering operator may enter into an agreement with a third party to conduct advertising, marketing, or branding on behalf of, or to the benefit of, the licensee when compensation is dependent on, or related to, the volume ..

November 22, 2022

Industry slams NYT sports betting coverage

On Sunday, the New York Times (NYT) published an article on sports betting lobbying efforts, which has been criticised by industry trade groups and individuals as including “several mischaracterisations”.

Titled “Cigars, Booze, Money: How a Lobbying Blitz Made Sports Betting Ubiquitous”, the article makes the argument that the gambling sector “got their way with lawmakers after showering them with donations, gifts and dubious arguments”.

This assertion has been criticised by a number of US-based trade organisations, who pointed to the already stringent regulatory environment and the industry-wide commitments to responsible gaming.

Criticised by trade bodies

In a statement published on LinkedIn, the American Gaming Association (AGA) said that the NYT had made “several mischaracterisations” in the article, and emphasised that there is a high standard for obtaining gaming licences in the US.

“As unapologetic advocates for our industry, the AGA engages with the New York Times and any..

November 15, 2022

Peru igaming regulations ban free bets, mandate supplier registration

Peru will ban free bets and demos, as well as mandating registration for suppliers, as part of its effort to regulate online gambling.

The detail comes as part of Peru’s efforts to regulate online betting and igaming. The country’s Congress unanimously voted for a bill to regulate the sectors in July, which was then signed into law in August, coming into effect 60 days later.

The law names the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru (Mincetur) as the country’s official gambling regulator.

As regulator, the body established a number of rules that will apply to operators in the market, including a ban on free bets and supplier registration requirements.

These rules are subject to a consultation, with stakeholders able to submit their opinions until 2 December.

Free bet ban

The regulations state that operators may not offer any type of remote betting or gaming for free, whether this is for promotional purposes or for education such as through a demo of a game.

If an operator ..

November 9, 2022

Flutter CEO: Gambling Act white paper likely pushed back to 2023

Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said that he thinks that the Gambling Act white paper is most likely to be delayed until next year, as he suspects new ministers will wish to “make their mark” on the document.

Speaking at Flutter’s Q3 earnings call, Jackson said he could not predict the the Gambling Act white paper timeline with any confidence, given that its release had repeatedly been pushed back by personnel changes in government and at the Gambling Commission. However, he said he would think its release was more likely to be in 2023 than this year.

“I don’t know if I can really comment on timing because I’ve tried to comment for the last two years and keep getting it wrong, so I might have lost some credibility there,” he said. “But I suspect it’ll end up coming out after Christmas as there isn’t much time now before Christmas.

“The new ministers I think will want to make their mark on it.”

Gambling Act review delays

The white paper is the next phase in the Gambling Act r..

October 28, 2022

World Cup could be make-or-break for industry marketing

iGB op-ed: Many will be paying close attention to how the industry markets its products during the 2022 Fifa World Cup. Daniel O’Boyle writes that the industry’s actions during the tournament may be the difference between fuel for a further crackdown or a chance to change the tide of the debate on gambling.

Yesterday, France announced a series of new rules and recommendations on bonuses. The contents of the regulations published by regulator l’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) are interesting for sure, but there may be more to think about beyond that.

The new rules on transparency are good, and other markets would largely benefit from requiring operators to make the terms surrounding bonuses as clear as possible.

Other rules, particularly the ban on sending bonuses to “excessive” gamblers, are clearly well-meaning but likely too vague to be implemented in the way that is hoped.

The non-binding “recommendations”, meanwhile, are hard to judge without knowing how motivated operators..

October 26, 2022

Ontario report

iGB’s new report on Ontario offers exclusive insight into Canada’s most populous province – the first to regulate betting and igaming.

When the Ontario market opened in April this year, it wasn’t quite brand new ground.

Anyone in the industry could tell you that the grey market in Canada’s largest province had been thriving for quite some time.

Still, bringing the province from grey to white offers certainty and new opportunities for many.

Six months on, we have a sense of the spoils available. Operators – excluding the lottery – brought in a combined CA$267m in the three months ended 30 September.

The biggest challenge in the province, however, may be marketing rules. Operators can offer bonuses, but may not promote them. As Marese O’Hagan writes in our progress report, that’s been difficult, but it hasn’t seriously dampened excitement about the jurisdiction.

And for now, those complying with the rules still need to compete with some unlicensed brands, which continue to do busin..

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Tag: Marketing regulation