This story is sponsored by Betfair Casino
UK regulator the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned a Betfair Casino TV ad for not making it sufficiently clear how much new players had to wager in order to cash out a sign-up bonus.
The ASA had received a complaint that the ad was misleading because it omitted the condition that for new players to withdraw the “free” £20 and any related winnings, they had to wager £800 within seven days.
The ad, which which featured oversized gambling symbols falling from the sky, was the centrepiece of a seven-figure marketing campaign launched last September, the operator’s largest-ever investment in TV advertising for its online casino.
The creative clearly directed players to to the “betfair.com/bonus” landing page advertised on the screen throughout for more information on the promotion, while the voiceover stating that players could “Deposit £10 and get £20 free” was accompanied by text declaring that “terms” and “cash out restrictions” applied, and that the bonus must be activated within seven days.
Betfair argued its view that the ad was not misleading, as it was standard industry practice when ads were limited by time and/or space to direct players to a landing page where they would find further details of the offer. Once there, the three-step guide was annotated with an asterisk linked to small print which explained the 40x bonus wagering requirement, and contained a link to full T&Cs.
The ASA did accept that many of the customers Betfair was targeting may have had similar accounts with other operators, and therefore aware that such cash-out restrictions normally applied.
However, the UK ad regulator was also concerned that “a significant number” would not, and considered that the ad’s failure to communicate information to players which could affect their decision to enter the promotion was “misleading”.
It therefore upheld the complaint and ruled it must not be aired again in its current form.
The ads aired on terrestrial Channel 4 and Five as well as ESPN and Sky Sports and were supported by an integrated cross-channel campaign incorporating online search, display advertising and customer communications.
Article written by Stephen Carter
