Royal Decree on Gambling Advertising “Absolutely Unjustifiable”

1. Royal Decree on Gambling Advertising “Absolutely Unjustifiable” At long last, the Spanish government has approved the Royal Decree that establishes highly restrictive and, to a certain extent, prohibitive measures for advertising and commercial activities of online gambling businesses legally operating in Spain based on Law 13/2011. As with other political decisions, the government of Spain approved the Royal Decree that will come into force with its publication in the Official State Gazette, taking advantage of a pandemic that has plunged the country into a deep health crisis and especially in a serious economic crisis that will last for many years. Without justification and lacking any scientific and statistical support, the government, through the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, has implemented a series of absolutely unjustifiable measures that will favor the transfer of a significant volume of demand for online gambling and betting to offshore operators that lack licenses, guarantees for consumers and any regulatory oversight over compliance - both technological and fiscal and responsible gaming. The resulting lack of a level playing field, combined with high direct taxation and far-reaching restrictions on advertising and other activities that are necessary.

2. General restrictions and prohibitions Sports clubs may not sign sponsorship contracts with online gambling or betting operators that would display advertising on shirts, equipment, or stadium billboards. The sending of gambling advertising by postal mail is prohibited. Gambling advertising sent by email is only permitted with the explicit consent of the addressee and in no case may be targeted at people who are considered at risk. Transitional deadlines For sponsorship contracts already signed and that is in force when the Royal Decree enters into force, a transitional period is established that ends coinciding with the end of the sports season in August 2021, without prejudice to the agreements between clubs and operators that extend beyod that date. Both the measures that prohibit promotional bonuses and the new regulation of advertising on the internet will have a transitional period leading up to their final entry into force on May 1, 2021. Social networks On social networks, operators can only issue advertising messages to their followers. On video exchange platforms, advertising is relegated to the same time slots as broadcast advertising. To protect minors, parental control is established through mechanisms that identify games of chance as a separate category in online advertising. Operators must have instruments in place that guarantee that their advertising is not directed at minors. Famous people may not appear in any advertising.

3. A serious distortion of a well-regulated commercial activity Some of the provisions contained in the Royal Decree are limitations and restriction on common advertising activities that are necessary to carry out an activity such as online gambling and betting. As a result, licensed operators are further limited in their ability to compete with black market operators that do not pay taxes or meet the necessary compliance, AML, or player protection standards. By weakening the position of licensed operators, the Spanish online market will thus become increasingly attractive to unregulated, illegal operators. The Royal Decree demonizes and even criminalizes the activity of gambling and betting without reason, without arguments that provide evidence to justify these measures, which rather seem to be the result of an ill-will and political opportunism against a lawful and perfectly regulated activity, which - although always susceptible to improvement - now faces unjustified capricious actions and restrictions instead. It is without a doubt an infringement on the freedom of business, as well as an attack against the legitimate interests of legally established companies that operate with licenses granted by the government based on a law established by the same. Moreover, these companies have made large technological investments in businesses that employ highly qualified technical employees in a segment that is one of the most advanced in technology development and innovation. rreparable economic damage is being inflicted on companies that have signed service, advertising and commercial contracts based on established regulation.

4. Contradicting some of the assertions by the Minister for Consumer Affairs, SELAE and ONCE not only offer "harmless" traditional lottery products, but also instant games - scratch cards and similar products - that are nothing but slot machine simulations. These operators, moreover, use the underage in their televised draws and broadcast their advertisements and draw results during the hours when children are watching television. There is also a major imbalance in gambling participation between (semi-)public and private operators. More than 30 million consumers participate in SELAE or ONCE games, while an estimated 10 million consumers participate occasionally. Final Words: Little more needs to be said, even though it would be quite easy to further demonstrate the disproportional and unjustifiable nature of this Royal Decree. We can ony hope that at some point common sense and reason will prevail. Not even the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown offer support for the supposition that gambling is a growing public health risk. https://www.gaminginspain.com/ Gaminginspain37@gmail.com https://tinyurl.com/ysu52k24 https://tinyurl.com/4nf83pm6