ASA reports drop in gambling ad age breaches
UK advertising watchdog the ASA has seen a drop in the number of online gambling ads that violate age restrictions.
UK.- The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has reported a fall in the number of breaches of age restriction by online gambling advertisements in the UK.
The ASA’s latest report monitored online ads for gambling, alcohol, tobacco and other products deemed harmful to children from October to December 2020.
It found 47 age-restricted advertisements on a sample of 49 websites and 12 YouTube channels with large numbers of underage viewers. Another 21 advertisers placed age-restricted marketing on eight YouTube channels and 23 websites.
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However, only three of the adverts identified in the latest report related to gambling. These appeared on three different websites but were published by the same advertising agency.
The number marks a further reduction from previous monitoring reports. The ASA’s first report last year found 70 gambling ads that breached restrictions. In its second report, corresponding to the period from July to September the number fell to five.
Although there was a fall in the number of infractions by gambling ads, breaches observed for ads promoting alcohol, tobacco and weight loss products remained steady.
See also: ASA sanctions “irresponsible” Ladbrokes ad
The ASA said: “Following our first and second reports, the ASA is encouraged by the lower number of ads found to have broken the rules.
“Once we have run the monitoring again in Q1 2021, we will in the summer publish a final report, reflecting back on this year-long project and in which we reserve the discretion to publicise repeat offenders, if there are any.”
ASA chief executive Guy Parker said: “We remain alive to concerns and we will be monitoring and reporting on this again.
“But we’re making significant progress in our ambition to build a culture of zero tolerance for age-restricted ads appearing on websites aimed at children and we expect that progress to continue.”
