L’Autorité de régulation des jeux (ANJ) is the regulator of France who recently announced a public consultation period of one month regarding gambling advertising. Depending on the outcome of the public comment, changes may be coming to the regulatory framework within the country’s gambling industry.

Gathering Feedback

Starting today and continuing for one month, the consultation seeks to gather feedback from residents of France about how gambling is perceived. The regulator also hopes to learn more about how citizens feel about the promotional strategies used by gaming operators.

A poll will be taken as to how people feel about the ANJ’s powers to regulate gambling advertising. The regulator will ask if new controls should be added to help protect young people and those who are more vulnerable to gambling harm.

The consultation comes at a time when ANJ has criticized gambling operators in France for excessive advertising during the Euro 2020.

Crossing a Line

Back in July, the ANJ held a meeting and stated that operators had crossed a line when it came to advertising involving the football event. Several ad campaigns had been found excessive when it came to the volume of ads on offer. Others were believed to be targeting the younger audience.

After speaking to operators about too many ads during the EURO 2020, an action plan was put into place. ANJ stated that license holders ads will be reviewed on a regular basis and tighter guidelines for marketing will be introduced by the end of this year.

ANJ reached the conclusion that too many ads were present during the tournament due to a survey by Harris Interactive. During the tournament events, the public seemed to have been unhappy with the widespread advertising connected to gambling.

Over 1,000 people were surveyed by the group from 18 years of age and up. More than 50% were revealed they felt that too many ads were featured on television during games. The majority of those polled also felt that the volume of advertising was too much and could lead to an increase in gambling addiction within the region.

After this new consultation, citizen dialogue workshops will also take place. These workshops will take place in different areas of France to gain a wider opinion of advertising. The events will discuss how advertising can be offered while shielding young people. All the information provided by the public as well as operators, public officials, and healthcare professionals will be used by the ANJ to make a decision on any new advertising regulations.