Legislation
Spain – Spain restricts online advertising during lockdown
By Phil - 3 April 2020
The Spanish Minister of Consumer Affairs, Alberto Garzón, has stated that the government has detected an increase in online gaming since Spain introduced lockdown measures last month. As a result the Council of Ministers has decided to limit gambling advertising.
Mr. Garzón was speaking in the daily virtual briefing and press conference. The Minister referred to new measures agreed on Tuesday by the Council of Ministers on gambling.
While sports gambling has decreased the government said that online casino gaming had increased due to the confinement of Spanish citizens in their own homes which has caused “an explosive situation that can lead to a pathological problem for certain social groups,” he said.
Therefore, in order to protect public health, the government has decided to prohibit the advertising of gaming on any advertising medium during the current state of emergency, with the exception of the time slot from one in the morning to five in the morning on television. Gambling advertising is banned for the rest of the day.
Garzón has had the industry in his sights for some months and it could well be the case that the current crisis means that the government can more swiftly implement its anti gaming measures. This could well be an issue going forwards in many jurisdictions as governments are granted wide sweeping powers.
The Association of Information Media of Spain (AMI) strongly criticised the ban. In the association’s opinion, this measure is “disproportionate” and puts the economic sustainability of sports media in Spain at risk, since it prevents them from obtaining the little advertising revenue they still received, after the suspension of all major sports events.
The organisation stressed that gambling is not a prohibited activity in Spain and that, therefore, there is no reason to think that its advertising should be prevented. According to the AMI the media has always shown great sensitivity in the fight against pathological gambling, offering their collaboration at all times in order to report any negative effects derived from non-responsible gambling.
In January Garzón announced that the government intends to regulate advertising on a national level. According to Garzón the Ministry will work alongside the autonomous communities and meet with those involved in the gaming sector. Alberto Garzón said that he would “absolutely” comply with the coalition government’s agreement to promote state regulation of gambling advertising and online gambling, similar to the one that governs tobacco products. Speaking on local television Garzón said that the new decree will ban 80 per cent of current ads as they are issued and will subject 20 per cent to much stricter rules.
At the beginning of March Garzón confirmed his interest in regulating the advertising of bookmakers, both on television and via other media describing the current state of gambling advertising as chaotic. In a recent television interview the minister was particularly critical of gaming advertising saying “there is practically no regulation on advertising. It is chaos, right now it is practically the law of the jungle.”
