Online Gambling Advert Banned

The latest advertisement from Wink Bingo.com has incurred the displeasure of Britain's Advertising Standards Authority, which announced the banning of the material this week.

According to the marketing publication Brand Republic, the ad, which was the work of Spacebar Media, featured a maternity nurse celebrating next to a trolley holding surgical equipment and a laptop, the screen of which read ‘Wink Bingo Winner’. Behind the nurse was a surprised man holding a teddy bear and the legs of a woman lying in a bed under a “Maternity Unit” sign, with the catch-line: “Find the appropriate moment...”

The creators of the ad claimed that the message of the ad was to distinguish Wink Bingo from competitors by being “cheeky, irreverent, sassy and a bit naughty”. The agency suggested, however, in response to complaints, that the ad depicted a heightened fantasy situation, the props and wardrobe were not authentic and a midwife could be hiding behind a screen. It also portrayed gambling as taking precedence over professional commitments and promoted betting in the workplace.

But the ASA would have none of that, saying: “We acknowledge that the intention of the ad was to portray a real-life situation in a humorous way, but we consider that the ad nonetheless is showing a health-care professional ignoring a woman giving birth in order to play bingo online.” The Authority also found that the slogan “Find the appropriate moment” could be interpreted as condoning gambling in the workplace.

In a separate issue, the ASA also rejected a complaint by Liberal Democrat culture spokesman, Don Foster, MP regarding Foxy Bingo’s TV ad on its ‘GBP10 free offer’. Foster had challenged the use of the word ‘free’, claiming it was misleading and arguing that the ads did not clarify the conditions of the offer.

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