Number Of Gambling Ads Seen By Children In 2019 Dropped, ASA Finds
The number of gambling advertisements seen by children in 2019 dropped from previous years, according to a new study by the Advertising Standards Authority.
Figures released by the ASA this week in a report titled ‘Children’s Exposure To Age-Restricted TV Ads: 2019 Update’ revealed that the number of advertisements witnessed by children aged four to 15 dropped to 115.9 per week, a huge fall from the peak of 229.3 ads per week back in 2013.
The ASA’s study also found that children witnessed around 2.5 gambling advertisements per week in 2019, a huge drop from the peak rate of 4.4 gambling ads per week back in 2013. The ASA states that the current rate is the lowest since 2018 in which it was 2.2 gambling ads per week.
During the same 12-year period, the number of children witnessing alcohol-related advertisements dropped more rapidly, falling from 2.8 ads per week in 2008 to 0.9 ads per week in 2019.
The ASA stated that the new figures indicate that regulations were succeeding in limiting children’s exposure to gambling and alcohol-related advertisements. However, one of the main reasons for this, as noted in the study, is that children are moving from television to social media where the ASA states that it must remain vigilant when regulating advertisements for age-restricted products.
Guy Parker, the Chief Executive at the ASA, said in a statement: “Our latest report shows that children’s exposure to TV ads for alcohol and gambling products remains low. We will continue our proactive monitoring to make sure this remains the case for TV ads as well as carrying out further monitoring online so that we limit children’s exposure to age-restricted ads wherever they appear.”
Recent Regulations
Meanwhile, other organisations have been busy clamping down on online gambling regulations in the UK. Most recently, the Gambling Commission announced a series of new rules to protect players during the COVID-19 lockdown, which required operators to conduct mandatory affordability checks while also preventing the reversal of withdrawals.
Last month, the gambling regulator launched its ban on the use of credit cards with gambling announced that it was looking into launching several new rules which change how gambling sites run their VIP schemes, forcing operators to conduct spending checks on VIP users and prohibiting them from adding users aged under 25.
Other measures included a reduction in the intensity of playing casino games. This includes the speed of video slots, the removal of turbo and autoplay mechanics, as well as the removal of split-screen features. The Commission is also looking into adding in-game messaging and new measures to further regulate gambling advertisements.