The UK Gambling Commission has fined GVC Holdings £350,000 —through its subsidiary Electraworks—for misleading advertisements about “free play” bonuses on its bwin website.
The company has also received a formal warning from the commission for failing to ensure that the person responsible for marketing at the business was in possession of a personal management license.
According to SBC News, the UK Advertising Standards Authority upheld a complaint against ElectraWorks for an ad offering a free bonus on its www.bwin.com website. The commission ruled the ad breached codes stipulating that all licensees must abide by any relevant provisions of the Committee of Advertising Practice code and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) code, which relates to ‘free bet’, ‘bonus’ or similar offers.
The Commission also discovered another ad on the Bwin website which breached the same code.
“This fine should serve a warning to all gambling businesses that we will not hesitate to take action against those who mislead consumers with bonus offers or fail to ensure they are correctly licensed,” said Richard Watson, commission program director in a press statement.
The commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority have been working to improve conditions for players gambling online. The CMA announced earlier this month that three leading operators have formally committed to change how they offer bonus promotions to ensure players can always access and release their own money, SBC report said.
In another story, Ladbrokes Coral revealed that their upcoming merger could result in 1,600 employees being laid off after the GVC takeover.
The two companies said that about 6 percent of their combined workforce of 26,800 could be laid off after the takeover is finalized. The job cuts would likely occur next year and involve UK employees.
GVC Holdings employs around 1,600 people on the Isle of Man and at its London office. Ladbrokes Coral has about 25,000 employees.
The companies said jobs affected would be in customer services, marketing, and administrative functions. The deal is not expected to affect Ladbrokes’ chain of over 3,500 high street betting shops, but the company will likely close its head office in London, with some of the roles being relocated to GVC’s London offices.
The Competition and Markets Authority has also announced that it will evaluate the competition impact of the proposed takeover. The authority will be accepting comments on the deal through February 21 and is expected to announce its decision on whether Ladbrokes and GVC should proceed with their consolidation in early April.
