ASA orders Paddy Power to stop ads

The advertising authority from the united Kingdom has ordered the company to stop the broadcast of a tv advert.

UK.- The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ordered UK bookmaker Paddy Power to cease the broadcast of a TV advert that implies that it’s okay and socially acceptable to gamble from work. Two complaints were received over the ad.

Paddy Power claimed that the BCAP had not been breached, and highlighted a rule that states that “advertisements for gambling must not condone or feature gambling in a working environment (an exception exists for licensed gambling premises).”  The ad used the song “Papa Loves Mambo”, which features the lyrics: “Watching ‘em gamble from a sneaky camera angle. Yeah, look at ‘em play on it; spinning away on it, they’re rubbing my face in it now.”

Whilst the company thought that the exemption could be applied to them, the ASA said in its ruling that it could’ve been exempted if it was featured in gambling premises. ASA warned Paddy Power that no future advertisements can include gambling within a working environment.