Four Betting Companies Face Penalty Over “Irresponsible” Advert

An affiliate advert that appear to target vulnerable gamblers and refer them to four betting companies, Ladbrokes, 888, SkyBet, and Casumo, has left the four companies in question in risk of being fined by the UK Gambling Commission, with Tom Watson MP, deputy leader of the Labour Party calling for “strong action” to be taken by the commission.

What happened?

An advert, which was released by an affiliate of all four companies, spoke of a player called “William” who had been in severe financial trouble, with his wife being ill and medical bills not being covered by their insurance.

The advert goes on to speak of how “William” made a huge amount online gambling, and his debt issues were gone.

Reactions

Watson described the advert as “disgusting” and as showing “disgraceful cynicism”, demanded action be taken to ensure “nothing like this can be allowed to happen again”.

The UKGC has not yet stated if it will fine the companies, but did say:

“We expect operators to take action to ensure that they have a clear view of what their affiliates are doing on their behalf

“Where operators fail to do this, we will not hesitate to use our powers to hold them to account.”

All four companies have said they were not aware of the adverts, with Sky Vegas ending its affiliate program entirely.

Ladbrokes said:

“We take this very seriously and have been working to improve the types of advertising and marketing used by affiliates.”

An 888 spokesperson said:

“The company removed the advertorial as soon as it was made aware of it and has since terminated its business relationship with the affiliate marketing agency.”

Clive Hawkswood of the Remote Gambling Association said it wouldn’t be fair to blame all affiliates for this issue, but added there were “now too many examples of them acting in a way that is unacceptable”.