Australia proposes new gambling ad restrictions

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is planning to introduce more restrictions on gambling advertising, especially on online streaming services. The authority has already banned betting advertisements during daytime live sports broadcasts on television channels.

As per the rule, betting ads should not be shown five minutes before the start of play until five minutes after the event has ended, between the hours of 5 am and 8:30 pm.

However, with the rise of so-called OTT platforms having opened up significant new opportunities for sports properties to secure coverage, the ACMA has now suggested that the same restrictions should apply to live sport that is streamed online.

 “The proposed restrictions require a ‘safe zone’ across traditional and new media platforms during times when children are more likely to be a part of the audience,” the authority said.

The regulator said that the revisions take into account stakeholder comments received during a consultation on an earlier draft released in April 2018.

The watchdog added that the changes would enhance flexibility for providers in notifying end-users of the scheduled start of a sporting event; remove a previously proposed class exemption for small online content service providers; restrict a proposed exemption for age-restricted services to providers that are Australian-licensed wagering operators.

Under the original regulations, the advertising ban did not apply to so-called “low-audience” sports channels.

The authority invited contributions towards the proposed changes by July 26.

Source: igamingbusiness.com