A TV ad for Cosmo Gaming’s NetBet online casino was determined by the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) as glamorising online gambling following a single complaint.
The ad showed a series of scenes in which people were holding multiple shopping carriers, handling money, sitting in a hot tube holding a pair of dice, walking towards a yacht, driving a convertible car and approaching a helicopter.
These scenes were prefaced by an image of a slot machine display showing “777” and interspersed with on-screen text reading “JACKPOT” and an image of an aeroplane.
Ladbrokes appears to be making an almost weekly appearance in the ASA’s adjudications list as its marketers continue to find acceptable advertising requirements a challenge.
This week’s adjudication looked at a promotional email from Ladbrokes offering a GBP 10 Free Football Bet. The recipient list, however, included a customer who wasn’t eligible for the bet.
“As the complainant was not eligible to take advantage of free bet offers at the time that they received the email, we considered that the ad would have caused unnecessary disappointment, and that Ladbrokes had not dealt fairly with the complainant,” the ASA wrote.
The promotional email was deemed misleading and Ladbrokes Betting and Gambling were told to ensure they did not send promotional marketing material in future to bettors who were ineligible.