The Australian Committee recommends phasing out online gambling ads in three years

A federal government committee has recommended phasing out advertising for online gambling in three years.

“A phased, comprehensive ban on online gambling advertising is recommended within three years,” Committee chair Peta Murphy said.

The ban would be rolled out in four phases over the three years, starting with the banning of online gambling advertising during school drop off and pick up times, followed by banning the adverts during an hour either side, and during, sporting events.

This would include banning advertising online gambling services in stadiums, and on players’ uniforms.

The third phase would see the ads banned altogether between 6am and 10pm, before the final phase and complete ban at the end of the third year.

“We have a culture where sport and gambling are intrinsically linked,” Ms Murphy said.

“These behaviours are causing increasingly widespread and serious harm to individuals, families, and communities.”

Ms Murphy said the three year time frame would allow sporting codes and broadcasters time to find new sponsors and advertisers.

Among the recommendations is a levy on online gambling, establishing a national regulator with an ombudsman, and creating an education campaign.

Phasing out adversting

The proposals to prohibit all inducements to gamble come in four phases:
The first would ban all social media and online advertising. Radio advertising during school drop-off times would also be prohibited.
In the second phase, broadcast advertising for an hour either side of sporting broadcasts would be banned (as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has argued for).
The third stage would prohibit all broadcast advertising for gambling between 6am and 10pm.
Finally, three years on, all gambling advertising would be gone from our screens.

The recommendations would set important precedents that can be readily applied to other forms of gambling. These include the principle of establishing a public health-oriented harm prevention policy, a national regulatory system, and enhancing consumer protections to potentially include a universal pre-commitment system.

If implemented, the recommendations will advance gambling regulation by several orders of magnitude.

By Anthony Anderson