Legislation
Lawmaker puts forward bill to restrict online gambling advertising in Argentina
By James - 6 May 2024
National deputy Eduardo Toniolli presented a bill to regulate the advertising of gambling and online betting, which seeks to prohibit mass advertising and only allows digital advertising, as long as it is targeted exclusively at adults who have given their prior consent.
The initiative was supported by the signatures of 26 other members of the Union for the Homeland (Unión por la Patria) political party.
“We aim to limit the presence of online gambling in our daily lives, especially in the lives of young people and adolescents, who now have immediate access through virtual wallets – at any time and from anywhere – to platforms that can lead them to compulsive behaviours, with serious consequences for their future development,” said the legislator from Santa Fe.
The proposal is inspired by debate over the issue in several European jurisdictions. The deputy stated that they took as a reference new legislation adopted by the Netherlands, which “distinguishes between non-targeted advertising, reaching a mass audience regardless of age, and online targeted advertising, which can be directed to a specific audience.”
“Following that distinction, we propose to prohibit the former (preventing advertising in public spaces, at sports events, in mass media or openly on social networks) and allow the latter, restricting it to the virtual realm, as long as it is targeted exclusively at adults who have given their prior consent,” he said.
