Adelson latest salvo paints Angry Birds as gateway to gambling

The Sheldon Adelson-backed Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling’s (CSIG) latest salvo is a web ad featuring the hit mobile game Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja and Candy Crush as gateway games to online gambling and addiction.

The spot titled “Don’t Bet On It” features a tech-savvy teenager playing Angry Birds on a mobile device which eventually leads to the theft of his fathers credit card details to access various gambling sites

The visuals are accompanied by a voice over saying “I was playing Angry Birds and then, you know, I just found it. It’s a lot cooler knowing that I’m playing a real game, not just, like, Candy Crush or Fruit Ninjas” as online blackjack and poker graphics flash across the screen.

“I believe the recent $32.5 million settlement by Apple over in-app purchases made by kids on their parents’ iPads/iPhones is just the tip of the iceberg if online gambling continues to grow,” commented Coalition National Co-Chair, former Senator Blanche Lincoln. “If kids can blow $2,600 in the app ‘Tap Pet Hotel,’ then think of what can happen when they get ahold of their parent’s password and start playing blackjack? It is a nightmare scenario for parents.”

“When I hear the words Internet gambling, the first thing I think of are other parents like me with teenage and college age children. The last thing any parent wants is for their child is to have a casino in their pocket. It is one thing for them to reach a mature age and travel to a casino for entertainment. It is quite another for the casino to follow them around 24 hours a day 7 days a week putting at risk their credit rating, savings or even their college tuition.”

The web ad is targeted at opinion leaders in Washington DC, Sacramento and Las Vegas through targeted digital and social media advertising, the CSIG said.

One thing is for certain the likes of Rovio, Halfbrick Studios and King are sure to take exception to the implication.