Three Gambling Ads Tossed In the UK

This spring, the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) directed the withdrawal of three gambling advertisements. In each case, the agency concluded that the ads were irresponsible, though for different reasons. All three advertisements involved attempts at humor.

A print ad for Paddy Power, an online betting site, featured a short man and asked the question, "Who says you can't make money being short?" The ad, according to the regulatory body, improperly "suggested this man's 'shortcoming' had been overcome by the wealth he had acquired through gambling and therefore that the ad implied gambling was a way to improve self-esteem or gain recognition or admiration."

Another online gambling site, InterCasino, was ordered to pull a television ad that depicted dwarves in medieval garb pulling on bell-ringing ropes, with a Japanese voiceover that supposedly mocked certain video games. The ASA concluded that InterCasino's ad should be canceled because it appealed to children.

William Hill was directed to remove a television ad for its online bingo product. The commercial portrayed a housewife who tricks her husband into leaving for work earlier in the morning so she can rush up to play online bingo. "I get mine the minute he's out the door," the happy woman announces. The ASA found that the ad improperly "depicted someone who was addicted to gambling and was attempting to hide that from their family by deception."