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Seven, Nine in breach over gambling ads

Seven aired 49 betting promotions during its Olympic coverage; Nine screens one gambling ad during NRL Grand Final.

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Seven Network and Nine Network have each contravened rules around gambling advertising by showing betting promotions during sporting events.

An Australian Communications and Media Authority investigation found that throughout July and August 2021, Seven aired 49 betting promotions during its Olympics coverage on its Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide broadcasts. Seven also made gambling advertisements available on its live stream of the Olympics.

A separate investigation found that Nine broadcast a gambling advertisement at 8:21pm during the half-time break of the NRL Grand Final on 3 October 2021.

Broadcasters are restricted from showing gambling advertising during their coverage of live sporting events shown between 5am and 8:30pm. After 8:30pm gambling ads can be shown but are restricted to defined breaks. For long-form events, such as the Olympics, broadcasters must not show gambling advertising from 5 minutes before the start of the first event of the day until 8:30pm, and not more than once every two hours after that time. These rules also apply to live streams.

ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said, “These rules exist to address community concerns about excessive exposure to betting promotions. Both Seven and Nine are well aware that they have to keep these ads to certain times.

“Many families enjoy watching sport as a shared activity and parents worry that children exposed to these ads may normalise betting as a part of sport.

“It is disappointing that both networks have failed to meet their responsibilities on such high-profile sporting events.”

Seven and Nine have now entered into court-enforceable undertakings with the ACMA, requiring them to implement systems to avoid breaking the rules again and refresh training for staff responsible for the scheduling and broadcast of gambling advertisements during sports programming. They each must also track the complaints and responses about gambling advertisements.

Additionally, Seven has been issued with a formal warning for its live stream breaches.

Both networks must report back to the ACMA on the training and the effectiveness of their new systems and practices, providing details of how they have resolved any issues that arose during that time.

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs has recently announced a parliamentary inquiry into online gambling, including reviewing the effectiveness of current gambling advertising restrictions on limiting children’s exposure to gambling products and services. The ACMA intends to make a submission to the inquiry given its regulatory responsibilities and experience.

10 Responses

  1. As soon as I saw the headline, I’d have bet my life savings and my soul on seeing references to “training and the effectiveness of their new systems” as the consequences to their actions… but no gambling company would be stupid enough to offer odds on something like that. Until ACMA or whoever start hitting broadcasters where it hurts – e.g. enforcing massive fines for breaches, nothing will change… broadcasters will continue to push boundaries if it’ll result in them earning $$$$, especially if they know that if / when they get caught, they’ll just have to “invest” in more training and “better systems”.

  2. I suppose you have to face facts here in Australia, namely that gambling in some form is a problem for someone in the community, anyone who stands outside a newsagent will see that Lottery is very popular and many dollars are spent weekly. As far as commercial TV (and the SBS) is concerned it is also a highly valuable source of advertising and sports sponsorship revenue, which wont be given up easily. Even though I personally would like to see sports gambling ads banned completely the NRL and other sporting organisations will be lobbying hard to keep them on our TV screens, and no doubt they will succeed, the irony is that if protecting children from gambling exposure is the goal then banning horse racing from FTA and ABC radio coverage should follow.

  5. Not one of these networks has ever been fined. Ever. Always a slap on the wrist and “counselling of staff” and onwards to the next infringement. ACMA is a joke. Completely and utterly.

    1. Nine once made an enforceable undertaking that if it breached again, during Underbelly if I recall, their fine would equal the ad revenue. But I don’t recall it ever happening. My feeling is ACMA is always cart after horse has bolted, rather than heading off problems before they happen. When a breach occurs staff are usually retrained. Wouldn’t it be better to train staff of their obligations in advance to avoid the errors in the first place? Seems pretty straight forward to me and a job basic.

  6. I’m honestly not surprised. I remember tweeting about them when the Olympics were on and honestly even with the AFL and NRL its everywhere. I’m so sick of betting company ads. They really need to stop. I mean even now i’m watching 7plus or 9now or even just regular tv on occasion and we get betting company ads from 3-4 different companies i won’t name and i’m just watching regular shows like Gogglebox, The Good Doctor, New Amsterdam and other US dramas. They all need to be banned completely but this won’t happen because as always money talks. Time they take action but here’s something else, the government gets kickbacks too from these companies so why would they stop them?

  9. These complaints were made to ACMA July-August last year. Quick response there. Meanwhile, it seems quite OK to air 2 or 3 betting ads in the same break around the sports report at 6:50pm and in Home & Away. Why not a fine equal to the revenue received from the ads? No, never. Ten years ago we read tvtonight.com.au/2012/03/govt-finally-realises-acma-needs-new-powers.html

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