The UK’s data regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office is examining a complaint made by Clean Up Gambling about the way that gambling companies make use of targeted advertising.
Reform group claims that the practice is rife in the gambling industry
The complaint focuses mainly on Flutter Entertainment’s use of the technology to advertise its British bookmaker Sky Bet brand in the UK. However, the complaint notes that the activity is likely prevalent throughout the gambling industry.
Clean Up Gambling commissioned a report earlier this year that found that Sky Bet and its partners had created behavioral profiles for customers. This was then shared with third party entities in what the report alleges was an attempt to win back gamblers who had left the platform.
In response to the complaint, Flutter told the Financial Times that it created profiles but did not have access to a customer’s wider financial data. These third party entities were used to target sponsored social media ads and ensure that they were not viewed by vulnerable customers.
However, the report uncovered that one of Sky Bet’s advertising partners, Signal, had a client profile for one customer that had 186 attributes of that individual including their favorite games and their susceptibility to certain types of marketing. The metrics also included details as to how much the customer was worth to the gambling company from a financial perspective. Signal has since ceased operations in the UK following the release of the report.
Speaking about the complaint, Matt Zarb-Cousin, the director of Clean Up Gambling said:
“This is the sharp end of data abuse. We are talking about addiction, people losing vast sums of money, and profiling being harnessed to exacerbate that. It’s not like selling garden tools on the internet. We are talking about something very, very addictive.”
Earlier in July, the Information Commissioner John Edwards said in a speech that his office’s new ICO25 Plan Strategy would look closely at the use of targeted advertising in the gambling industry.
In March of this year, the Gambling Commission fined Flutter £1.7 million for sending promotional emails to self-excluding customers and some who had opted out of receiving marketing materials. Something that Clean Up Gambling feels is a perfect example of how gambling companies prey on vulnerable customers.
Ciaran has been working within the Gambling Industry as a deep analyst since 2019. His deep knowledge and understanding of all the gambling regulations, and processes makes him a true asset, and an always valuable point of view for Gambling Industry News, allowing us to cover every topics from a brand new perspective.