Noah Rose, the sole trader trading as BetDeluxe, one of the leading online sportsbooks from Australia that creates premium sports betting solutions and applications, needed to pay a fine worth AU$50.172 (US$34.400). 

The company breached the spam-unsubscribing rules, which led to that punishment. The company has sent more than 104.000 SMS messages that didn’t contain the necessary unsubscribe button. Additionally, in more than 820.000 messages, the sender’s contact details haven’t been displayed. 

A fine because of the messages:

Because of these breaches, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) decided upon a fine. These messages have been sent in the period from December 2021 and February 2022. 

In these problematic ads, the content that has been advertised is “cheeky punt” and “VIP service” related to the company’s sports and racing offerings, as well as bonus bets and various money-back offers.

Nerida O’Louglin, ACMA Chair, said: “We received complaints from a significant number of people, with many expressing their frustration about receiving promotions for gambling. Any spam can be annoying, but when gambling is involved, the risk of financial and emotional harm can be pronounced, so it’s important that wagering operators take compliance very seriously.”

BetDeluxe agreed upon a court-enforceable undertaking during the following two years, where its business will be reviewed by the independent party. The company’s e-marketing practices will be controlled and improved by the authority. 

The compliance reports to the ACMA and spam training for the company’s staff are also required.

O’Loughlin continued: “We will be closely monitoring BetDeluxe’s compliance and the legally binding commitments it has made to the ACMA.”

“The online gambling industry, including the smaller players, should be on notice that the ACMA is actively monitoring for indications of non-compliance with the spam rules, and the penalties can be serious.”

Many issues related to the marketing rules:

This isn’t ACMA’s first rodeo when it comes to spam enforcement. During the last year, precisely, in February 2022, Sportsbet also had to pay a fine of AU$3.7 million because of a similar breach. 

Various companies had to pay more than 6.4 million fines during the previous 18 months for the same reasons as BetDeluxe. Also, there were 13 court-enforceable undertakings and one formal warning from the ACMA.

The rule regarding SMS and email unsubscribe buttons is a compliance priority for the ACMA during 2022 and 2023. 

Would the fines that need to be paid transform the businesses’ attitude towards the advertising? It’s to be seen during 2023.