Australian operators ordered to replace “gamble responsibly” tagline with “chances are you’re about to lose”
Australian betting operators must shelve the “gamble responsibly” advertising tagline in favour of seven stricter safer gambling mottos from March 2023.
Online bookmakers such as Ladbrokes, Betr and Sportsbet will be required to ask punters a series of harder hitting questions under new rules enforced by the Australian government.
“Chances are you’re about to lose”
“Imagine what you could be buying instead”
“You win some. You lose more”
“What’s gambling really costing you?”
“Think. Is this a bet you really want to place?”
“What are you prepared to lose? Set a deposit limit”
“What are you really gambling with?”
Online operators must rotate between each tagline equally over a 12-month period and each message must be accompanied by a support number and the gamblinghelponline.org.au domain.
The messages will be applied to all TV, radio, print and social media advertising.
All Australian states and territories have agreed to the new marketing rules which have become part of the National Consumer Protection Framework.
According to Gambling Research Australia, the country has the highest annual gambling losses per capita at A$1,276.
In addition, a report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found Australians lost around A$25bn on legal forms of gambling between 2018 and 2019.
“Evidence and research clearly show the ‘gamble responsibly’ message doesn’t do the job of getting people to think and to minimise harm,” said Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth.
“The new taglines, which were agreed with all state territories and the Commonwealth, are evidence-based and they actually have been shown to work,” she added.
Last month, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) slammed two media networks for breaking marketing rules by broadcasting gambling ads during live coverage of the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
