There is quite a bit to do about gambling advertising in New Zealand. Between various crises, the call to curb gambling advertising is also getting louder and louder. Compared to the flood of advertising towards the end of 2021, a lot has already changed, but those changes continue.
It is not only in New Zealand that gambling advertisements cause controversy. For example, our southern neighbors show the same development and there are similar rules in, for example, the United Kingdom, Sweden and the regional gambling licenses that are becoming increasingly popular.
In this article we compare the different restrictions for gambling licenses between countries and regions with their own gambling license. All of these licenses try to strike a balance between offering a legal choice for players and allowing advertising. By comparing the different licenses, it becomes clearer what is common worldwide and where New Zealand falls compared to other licenses.
What's the problem with gambling ads?
Before delving deeper into how different licenses deal with gambling advertising, it's good to identify the problem exactly. What's wrong with gambling ads? Broadly speaking, there are two different areas in which gambling advertising is a problem: an excess of gambling advertising and protecting players.
The excess of gambling advertisements is above all a social annoyance. Especially just after the market opened on October 1, 2021, there was a flood of gambling advertisements on every conceivable platform. No wonder, because without advertising it was difficult to find out which casinos exactly had a legal offer.
Nevertheless, there was already a warning of an excess of advertising well before the casinos were online. In May 2021, four months before the first advertisement was broadcast, René Jansen of the Gaming Authority already warned of an excess of advertisements. That irritation caused many complaints and spurred political parties to action - a trend that was visible worldwide.
The much bigger problem and the official reason gambling advertising is being restricted is to protect high-risk players. The first real restriction imposed by the government, the ban on role models in advertisements, was supported from that point of view. This is what legal protection Minister Franc Weerwind literally said:
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I see that there are many advertisements with well-known (former)footballers and influencers who try to convince people to gamble. Young people in particular can be sensitive to this. That is why I have introduced a ban on the use of role models in gambling advertisements.
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New Zealand
The online gambling license in New Zealand is one of the youngest and strictest licenses in the world. Since October 1, 2021, players can contact reliable online casinos and bookmakers betting ).
After the new law on gambling became active on October 1, 2021, ten casinos came online, accompanied by the necessary advertising. Those advertisements were supposed to alert players to the new legal offer. Existing casinos ( TOTE and Online Casino Games ) the new game offer ( slots , roulette , blackjack , poker , bingo , etc), while new names such as Lucky Nugget (at the time SkyCity) and BetCity we quickly had to work on brand awareness to compete against those established names.
Conditions for advertising in autumn 2021
Even at that time, the advertisements were already subject to strict conditions. For example, gambling advertisements on tv were allowed to be broadcast only from 21:00. It was also forbidden to use role models, whereby the role models could not be aimed at young people up to the age of 24.
Media were also required to ensure that advertisements were not offered if 30% or more of the audience on the medium was 24 years of age or younger. A well-known example is a forum for football fans that also offered advertisements for bets, with the Advertising Code Commission eventually determining that that threshold of 30% was indeed not met.
A reverse example came from another football-related website, where the various games in the Eredivisie directly showed a button to place a bet. The Gambling Authority intervened.
In addition to the legally imposed conditions, the casinos had also imposed limits on themselves, in order to avoid later problems. For example, a maximum of three ads per advertising block of up to 30 seconds was agreed. Also, such advertisements were not allowed to be split into two parts.
The same applies, for example, to the bonus . New Zealand has a maximum welcome bonus of $ 250. This is not a legally imposed maximum, but a mutually agreed amount.
711 Casino is one of the parties that has not joined the industry association. As a result, this casino is one of the only parties to have a higher bonus, and the company also does not participate in the self-imposed rule of stopping outdoor advertising. Of course, the company complies with the legal rules.
Adapted terms and conditions
The number of advertisements quickly led to outrage, but also pushed others against the sore leg. For example, gambling advertisements would tempt vulnerable players to play (more). As a result, a new package of restrictions has come into force.
Role models
The first of these legal measures was the abolition of role models. Previously, there was more room for interpretation. For example, Andy van der Meijde, Wesley Sneijder and Ronaldinho were used instead of current athletes (not allowed) - after all, there was nothing in the law or the advertising code about former athletes. Adjusting these rules is therefore primarily closing a loophole in the law. So casinos had to adapt their advertising, such as BetCity for example, he did a advertising without role models .
Sponsorship
For other tightened rules, that applies less. For example, the sponsorship of events will no longer be allowed from January 1, 2024. For example, some casinos sponsor sporting events, festivals or competitions.
Especially in sports betting companies are present. Especially bookmakers, where players bet on (the outcome of) sports competitions, are common around sports fields. For example, there are shirt sponsors, stadium sponsors and ‘betting partners’, where especially football clubs receive all kinds of amounts from the bookies. From January 1, 2025, that is also prohibited.
The widespread introduction of these rules gives sponsors and clubs some time to respond to the upcoming changes. For many football clubs, the new sponsor was an important source of income, especially for AZ , Fortuna Sittard and FC Volendam, who have a casino as their main sponsor.
Non-targeted advertising
The last change is that from now on, non-targeted advertising is no longer allowed. This will take effect on January 1, 2023. Non-targeted advertising is all advertising that is not aimed at explicit users of the product; those who search the internet for online casinos or bookmakers may still encounter advertising. Online advertising in which a certain audience is clearly reached is also simply allowed. As of January 1, 2023, there will no longer be any advertisements visible in public spaces or on radio and television.
Timeline of gambling advertising and the law in New Zealand
There are five defining moments in the short history (and future) of gambling advertising. Below and next to this are all data on restrictions for gambling advertisements in order:
October 1, 2021-New Zealand's first legal online casinos open and are therefore also allowed to broadcast advertisements.
June 30, 2023-after complaints and chamber questions, the ban on role models in gambling advertisements will be the first to come into force. Other measures are also being announced.
January 1, 2023-from this moment on, the ban on unfocused advertising is in effect.
January 1, 2024-from this date, gambling companies are no longer allowed to sponsor events.
January 1, 2025-from this point on, betting companies should no longer be visible in sports, including as shirt sponsors or other forms of sponsorship (for example, a stadium name).
Local problems with gambling ads
It is not only at the national level that the gambling advertisements cause problems. There are also complaints at the municipal and regional level about the many advertisements. In the municipality of Groningen, ChristenUnie and SP investigated the possibilities of banning posters with gambling advertisements. In August, the Stichting Reclame Code also responded to a complaint about an advertisement in a bus booth, because many young people take the bus to school here. From 1 January 2023, this will also change when the law against unfocused advertising comes into force.
Other countries in dollarpa
New Zealand is far from the first and only country with these problems. Due to the rapid development of online casinos, governments are constantly working to adapt the law to the changing reality. For example, several countries have a ban on, for example, a welcome bonus, other players cannot use the purchase bonus in slots and still other countries have special rules about the type of advertising that online casinos can make.
For a clearer picture and a good comparison with the New Zealand policy, we discuss the main measures that governments have taken in Australia, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Sweden has a long tradition of online gambling and a large gambling industry that operates worldwide and the United Kingdom is considered one of the strictest licenses for casinos anywhere online.
Australia
Our southern neighbors have exactly nine online casinos . This is due to the fact that licenses are issued only to existing physical casinos (as in New Zealand, casinos are distinguished from gambling halls). Every online casino uses the license of a physical casino. With nine players, the competition is fierce.
To attract the attention of players, Belgian casinos are not allowed by law to offer welcome bonuses. There is also a law in progress that prohibits all forms of non-targeted advertising. The excess of television advertising on Belgian networks is thus curbed.
The rules around targeted advertising are also becoming stricter. For example, casinos on their own website or social media channels are not allowed to start a conversation with players or visitors and video messages on their own website have a length of up to five seconds.
In Australia, too, there is a phased introduction, whereby (online) casinos must disappear from the sports world by 2025. In the meantime, adapted rules apply to television advertisements around sports tournaments: such advertisements are up to five seconds, with a maximum of two per hour and no more than fifteen minutes before or after the start of the match.
It is clear that the desire in New Zealand and Australia is the same, but that both countries make different choices. For example, the ban on television advertising in New Zealand is being tightened and implemented earlier. On the other hand, welcome bonuses are not prohibited in New Zealand. Where both countries do make similar choices is in the implementation and phased introduction of the advertising ban in sports.
UK
The United Kingdom has a rich tradition of online casinos. the license of the United Kingdom Gambling Commission, the UKGC, is known worldwide as one of the best licenses for online casinos.hundreds of online casinos operating around the world (legal or not) are licensed by the UKGC.
Where the license for casinos extends around the world, the UKGC also has to deal with domestic policy. While in Australia, advertisements on television must be close to the match in time, in the United Kingdom it is the other way around: advertisements were not allowed to be broadcast from five minutes before the match to five minutes after the match - that rule expired from 21:00.
Other conditions are a lot more general. For example, in the United Kingdom, as in all other countries, it is not allowed to outline an idea that gambling leads to profit or is a solution to financial problems. Also, the advertising should not be aimed at young people in any way.
Since in many licenses and in many governments welcome bonuses also fall under the heading of gambling advertising, it is striking that there are few rules about this in the United Kingdom. Provided that casinos pay taxes and clearly display the rules regarding the bonus, there are no strict requirements for the amount of the bonus.
There are also plans, as in New Zealand and Australia, to restrict sponsorship of English sports teams by gambling companies. In the run-up to that law, clubs are asked to stop shirt sponsors of their own accord.
The main difference between the United Kingdom and New Zealand is that the tightening of the law in the United Kingdom is aimed at some expressions. For example, non-targeted advertising is not a problem in itself, but gambling advertising on television must adhere to established Times.
Sweden
Sweden, like the United Kingdom, is one of the most important countries in online casinos. many large gambling companies and studios are (originally) from Sweden, such as: Unibet , Betsson, LeoVegas, Play'n Go, Evolution and Quickspin. Also, many innovations in online casinos come from the Scandinavian country.
One of the distinguishing measures in Sweden is that players are only allowed to receive a bonus once. Moreover, this bonus is up to 100 SEK, roughly about $ 10. In addition, Sweden also has a deposit limit of 5,000 SEK per casino. That last limit was set for the sake of corona, but has not yet been lifted.
Yet it does not end there. In Sweden, too, politics are working to limit gambling advertising. It is striking that it is also forbidden to promote the illegal casino offer. Nevertheless, the Swedish government is pushing for a much stricter policy against advertising, which equates gambling advertising with alcohol advertising.
Instead of a general regulation, advertisements are therefore placed under strict supervision. The policy is thus becoming stricter, but it is less easy to indicate what exactly is changing in the everyday life of the average Swede. However, it is clear that there will be fewer advertisements on balance.
The rest of the world
Outside of dollarpa, governments are also working on the legalization of online gambling and how that legal offer is marketed. North America is the most important market in which there is also a lot of demand. In the US, until a few years ago, any form of online gambling was strictly prohibited, but in many states it is becoming more and more possible.
For example, New Jersey has a policy most similar to The New Zealand offer, with online casinos and sports betting complementing the physical offer in Atlantic City. Other states, such as Iowa, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Michigan also have a complete range of sports betting, but a varying attitude towards online casinos. in many other states, bills are ready for online gambling.
The situation in Canada is similar to New Zealand. There was no license for online casinos until recently, but (unlike in the US) players could play at international casinos - a tolerance policy, so. Ontario was the first province to take matters into its own hands and develop a local license. That license came online a little later than the New Zealand and puts our license to the test in terms of strict conditions.
Ontario
Some of the strict requirements in Ontario include the lack of autoplay (as in New Zealand), verification of players by live video call and a minimum length of time for each round played on a slot or other game.
In the area of advertising, agreements have mainly been made on the content. This is where the familiar elements come back: advertising should not be aimed at young people (or other risk players), should not paint a rosy picture and should be accompanied by a message about controlled gambling. Specifically, the message is that bonuses should not be mentioned in public advertisements. Incidentally, the license in Ontario only became active just after the summer of 2023. So there is a high probability that similar complaints about a flood of advertising will come later.
New York
New York has also set up its own license, following New Jersey and other states in the US. In New York, online casinos are not yet allowed, but casinos have recently been able to offer sports betting. That change has also led to a change in the rules around advertising.
Here, too, it is about the content of the ads and there are (yet) no rules about the frequency or timing of the ads. The content should not be aimed at young people, problem players and should be accompanied by information on helplines.
An explanation for the difference
As can be seen in the overview above, there are always different rules for each country or region. There are a number of explanations for this. First of all, the political climate is important. In countries with Liberal governments, less stringent rules are generally imposed. Countries with a more social Government, such as Sweden, often have stricter rules.
In addition, the media landscape is also different per country. In New Zealand, many of the rules are imposed by the cooperating organisations from the industry itself (which means that parties outside that organisation have different rules). In Australia and the United Kingdom there are also such parties. Due to the fact that these organizations have a lot of influence on self - regulation, the laws differ per country-after all, many of the advertising rules are determined by parties.
Many of the rules that have been imposed have been adopted by other countries. There is a certain degree of cooperation between the different licenses, which means that the content of advertisements in particular follows the same rules to a large extent.
Conclusion
New Zealand does not have a unique problem with the upcoming changes in the field of gambling advertising. A tour of different countries shows that other countries are also struggling with the balancing act between letting casinos advertise (and thus channel players to the legal offer) and protecting risk players and the general public.
This balancing act provides for different measures in each country, addressing different components of advertising. In Australia and Sweden, players must do without a welcome bonus and maximum deposits apply. The UK, on the other hand, is known for higher bonuses, but only allows gambling advertisements at specific times around sporting events.
In general, it can be seen that governments are pulling the reins more. In Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, steps are being taken to keep sponsors from the gambling world out of the sport. The New Zealand law for this has already been signed, but is coming into force in stages.
The large fluctuations in the landscape can also have a clear impact on the advertisements. Where many new parties suddenly come online, a flood of advertisements is also visible. A stable market may also result in fewer advertisements. For governments, it is important to strike a balance between restrictions and channeling it to the legal offer . How the measures will work out in practice remains a guess for the time being.