Members of the U.K. Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) have announced they will call a halt to all television and radio advertising while the country’s coronavirus lockdown continues.
The U.K. Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has announced that its member companies will suspend all TV and radio advertising while the country’s coronavirus lockdown continues.
The suspension will begin May 7 and continue until at least June 5. Email and online ads will continue, but the council said its members have “significantly” reduced the volume of advertisements through these channels as well.
“This major announcement by our members will result in the removal of half of all product advertising on TV and radio,” BGC Chief Executive Michael Dugher said. “I hope now that other major gambling operators like the National Lottery follow our lead.”
Dugher said the pause on advertising comes despite the fact that gambling has decreased since lockdown started.
“We have been working closely with our member companies since this crisis began to monitor the impact of betting and gaming,” Dugher said. “There hasn’t been an explosion in people betting online as some had predicted—in fact, the opposite is true, with total revenue down by up to 60 percent. Overall gambling levels have also fallen significantly as a result of betting shops and casinos closing and the suspension of live sport.
“And while advertising levels on sports and casino are also down, again contrary to some assertions, we recognize that removing product advertising will act as a further safeguard during Covid-19.”
According to iGamingBusiness.com, the BGC took the step to demonstrate its commitment to responsible gambling. Nigel Huddleston, minister for sport, tourism and heritage, asked the association for a new controls to keep players safe during Covid-19; they included an increase in the number of safer gambling messages across all sites, the active promotion of deposit limits, and increased interventions for at-risk customers.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Gambling-Related Harm called the plan “weak” and said it “well-short of what is required.” Dugher took exception to that charge, saying, “From day one of this crisis we have sought to protect customers potentially at risk, including announcing stepping up safer gambling measures as part of our 10 pledges for Covid-19 in March. This latest move by the regulated industry further underlines our commitment to safer betting and gaming with many people cut off and feeling anxious.
“Throughout this crisis, as the new standards body, the BGC has worked very closely with the government. Ministers and the regulator all deserve credit for their steadfast and consistent determination to have an evidence-led approach and to rightly call for higher standards,” he said.
