Finnish health authority calls for gambling advertising curbs
Health regulator calls for marketing to be highly restricted in line with alcohol and tobacco advertising
Finland’s National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has called for significant restrictions to be applied to gambling marketing in the country.
Speaking to Finnish news outlet Uutiset, THL’s senior researcher Jani Selin highlighted the advertising of monopoly operator Veikkaus as being “at odds” with public health communications on problem gambling.
“Veikkaus’ marketing sends very different messages than those about the dangers of gambling,” Selin added. “They should be consistent and in keeping with the way that other harmful products are marketed.”
As the monopoly operator, Veikkaus is the only firm authorised to advertise in the Finnish market, with other foreign operators prohibited from marketing their services in Finland.
A recent survey by the Finnish Ministry of Health revealed that while problem gambling rates among men have decreased, problem gambling disorders have “intensified and worsened” since Fintoto, Ray and Veikkaus merged in 2017.
Selin called on health officials to follow a similar stance to that being employed in the tobacco and alcohol industries, where marketing is heavily restricted, and in the case of tobacco, banned entirely.
In addition, THL has said the marketing budget of Veikkaus should be reviewed, with a view to reducing the level of marketing currently being undertaken.
Veikkaus is currently the largest advertiser in Finland, with an annual marketing budget of more than €50m. It is only allowed to market so-called ‘green games’, which are considered to be less harmful and carry a lower risk of gambling addiction.
Velipekka Nummikoski, Veikkaus managing director believes these standards are the opposite of the “very aggressive” marketing and advertising practices being used by foreign gaming companies in other countries.
The company recently shifted its focus further towards the online gambling sector, announcing deals to expand into sports betting with SBTech and the further expansion of its online casino site Veikkaus.fi.