Australia bans gambling ads featuring celebrities and limits online ads to users over 18 By Byron Kaye and Christine Chen
Australia has announced it will ban gambling ads featuring celebrities and restrict online gambling ads to internet users over the age of 18 starting next year, in an attempt to address public health concerns amid measures recommended by its own investigation.
Nearly three years after its government inquiry recommended a total ban on online gambling ads, citing a surge in public health costs, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated on Thursday that his government will only allow online ads for users logged into an account and over 18.
Gambling advertisers, who contribute significantly to free-to-air TV and sports revenues, are already subject to restrictions on frequency and broadcast times. The sweeping new rules include a cap of three ads per hour between 6 am and 8:30 pm, as well as a total ban during live sports broadcasts during these hours.
Scheduled to take effect in 2027, the package addresses an issue that has plagued Mr. Albanese’s center-left government, despite holding a record majority in parliament. Opposition lawmakers criticize Mr. Albanese for being slow to address the gambling issue, which cost the country $34 billion last year, the highest per capita cost in the world.
Public health experts argue that the real cost is even higher due to losses often leading to treatment for depression, gambling addiction, and alcohol dependence.
“Not a single parent in this country would accept their children seeing gambling ads,” said Tim Costello, chief advocate for the Alliance for Gambling Reform, referring to a provision in the new law requiring internet users to opt-out if they do not want to see ads.
However, Mr. Albanese defended the new rules as the “biggest reform ever seen in the gambling sector.”
“The government is taking decisive action to address public and community health issues related to gambling,” he said in a statement.
The rules aim to minimize children’s exposure to gambling’s harms by ending the “avalanche of ads” they face, he added.
Ads will also be banned on radio during school drop-off and pick-up times. The use of celebrities and sports stars to promote gambling will be prohibited, and gambling brands will be banned from sports stadiums and player uniforms.
The ban is likely to impact online gambling companies such as Flutter Entertainment PLC, owner of the popular betting app Sportsbet, and Entain PLC, owner of Ladbrokes, ranked third.
Shares of Tabcorp Holdings were down 1.9% in afternoon trading, higher than the 1.1% drop in the ASX200 benchmark index.
(1 USD = 1.4520 AUD)
