SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Netherlands Gambling Authority, has issued a warning to Nationale Postcode Loterij (NPL), the Dutch Postcode Lottery, for breaching the advertising rules of the KOA regime.
The warning concerns an NPL campaign which featured a ‘well-known celebrity’ to promote a ‘Deal or No Deal’ themed lottery game on TV and online media.
The use of a celebrity contravenes July’s update of KOA regime rules which ban the use of celebrity endorsement and sporting ‘role models’ to promote gambling services.
Regarded as a soft gambling product, lottery operators are allowed to use celebrity endorsements, however, campaigns must be verified by KSA to ensure no appeal to underage audiences.
“If they want to use a famous Dutch person in an advertisement, providers of less risky games of chance, such as lotteries, must investigate the reach of that person among minors and young adults,” read KSA statement.
“NPL did not investigate until the Ksa asked. The Ksa also established that the role model in question has a substantial reach among young people. That is why the NPL should not have used the role model in advertisements.”
The lottery was issued a warning instead of fine, as the campaign had been pre-scheduled prior to KOA rules changes being adopted. The lottery operator holds “no objection to the decision that is irrevocable”.
The ban on celebrity endorsements formed part of the Dutch government’s one-year review of the rules and standards of the KOA Regime 1 October 2021.
Dutch operators, meanwhile, await the ‘Addiction Prevention Decree’ recommendations due to be published this autumn by new Legal Protections Minister Franc Weerwind.
Though positive on the Dutch market’s initial safeguards, Weerwind has previously expressed concerns on the increased participation of young adults (18-to-24) in online gambling following KOA’s launch.
Licensed operators have been warned that upcoming regulatory reforms will focus on improving advertising standards and implementing new measures/duties to minimise gambling addiction.
