01-May-2010
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| Advertising Code of Practice |
This Code of Practice (the “Code”) is to be adopted as a means of advertising self-regulation for the interactive gambling industry and is intended to be applied to all forms of advertising undertaken by any gambling operator that is a member of the IGC (“Member”). The Code applies equally whether the advertising is performed by or on behalf of the Member. The Code is intended to supplement applicable legislative requirements within relevant jurisdictions and provide for minimum acceptable advertising standards.
The object of the Code is to ensure that advertisements are legal, decent, honest and truthful and that they have been prepared with a sense of obligation to the consumer and society. The Code is intended to ensure that IGC Members conduct business in a manner that generally upholds / preserves and maintains the reputation of the online gaming industry as a whole. A serious breach of this Code may affect the status of IGC Membership.
WEBSITE
The online site of a Member should contain (or should contain a link to) the following in a readily accessible location:
1. The name of the Member and the address of its registered office;
2. Contact information for resolving customer complaints and disputes. There should be telephone support plus additional support, including but not limited to real-time chat and / or email;
3. A statement identifying the jurisdiction from which the interactive gambling is conducted, with a link to / contact for the licensing jurisdiction to enable checking of the license status of the Member and for dealing with consumer complaints;
4. Information about the type of license held by the Member that authorizes the conduct of the interactive gambling business;
5. Link/s to, or information about, the IGC’s Helping Hand program or similar problem / responsible gambling service resources;
6. Clear information about the player registration process and deposit / withdrawal processes including timeliness of payments;
7. Clear information about the requirements for any promotional campaign, including a link to the applicable terms established for each specific promotion;
8. Clear wording that persons under the age of 18, or such other age of majority in the applicable jurisdiction or as stated by the Member (not to be younger than the age of majority in a jurisdiction), are not permitted to register or to participate in interactive gambling. Members shall take reasonable steps to ensure that this does not occur by utilizing appropriate age / identity verification measures. The IGC has drafted minimum criteria for age / identity service providers;
9. Information about the site’s payout percentages (if applicable, for example, casino style games), instructions on play and dispute resolution;
10. A privacy policy that states the type of information that is collected about players and the purpose/s for which the information is collected
ADVERTISING
1. Personal information should only be collected on players with the knowledge and acceptance of the player. An online site should adhere to the privacy and data protection laws of applicable jurisdictions, or, where no such laws are applicable, to those as set out in the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (The CAP Code -- http://www.asa.org.uk/index.asp).
2. Advertising should not be false, misleading, or deceptive, particularly with regard to the chances of winning, and should be based on factually verifiable information and actual percentages;
3. Advertising should comply with principles of responsible gambling and should not be designed to encourage or mislead people to adopt uninformed gambling behaviour;
4. Advertisements should be in good taste, not offend prevailing community standards and not target minors or be displayed at sites frequented by minors;
5. Advertisements should not portray people in a stereotyped or demeaning fashion with respect to age, sex, sexual orientation, race or disability;
6. Advertisements should readily identify the person / site for which the advertising is performed and the advertiser / affiliate performing the advertising;
7. The target audience will be people of 18 years and over, or such other age of majority in the appropriate jurisdiction or as stated by the Member (not to be younger than the age of majority in a jurisdiction), and media selection and placement will be in accordance with applicable media Code of Practice. The advertising should not contain, whether real or diagrammatic, persons under the age of majority or give the impression of containing persons under the age of majority;
8. Advertisements should not contain any material that infringes on another’s intellectual property rights;
9. Members should not engage in the distribution of unsolicited advertising (i.e. SPAM) either directly or through a third party. Email advertising should have an unsubscribe, or opt out, facility and a means for recipients to contact the Member responsible directly and complain about unsolicited or inappropriate marketing;
10. Advertisements should not provide opinion as to the legality in any jurisdiction other than the jurisdiction in which the Member is licensed. It may be beneficial to use language supplied by the regulators or gaming attorneys in the subject jurisdiction rather than the Member attempting to construe the applicable laws;
11. The advertising of interactive gambling should not be associated with excessive consumption of alcohol or drugs;
12. Advertisements should not contain a misrepresentation or defamatory statement that is likely to cause damage to the business or goodwill of another person.
13. Advertisements should not misuse or appropriate the intellectual property or goodwill of third parties;
14. Members shall use reasonable endeavours to ensure that a third party performing advertising on their behalf abides by this Code;
15. Members should conduct business in a manner that generally upholds/preserves and maintains a positive reputation of the interactive gambling industry as a whole;
16. Interactive gambling software providers should, where applicable, make every effort to ensure that their licensees, agents and contractors comply with, at a minimum, this Code of Practice;
17. Advertisements should comply with all applicable laws.
REDRESS
Complaints about Member compliance with the Code will be reviewed by the Executive Director or designee. Where appropriate, complaints and recommended action will be referred to the IGC Board or applicable Committee for determination.
Approved 02 Feb 2006 |
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