Swedish regulators partner up to enforce “moderate” marketing rules

Sweden’s advertising and gambling regulators have published an agreement outlining closer cooperation over the supervision of gambling marketing.

The agreement aims to “create clarity and achieve cooperation on effective supervision” and divides responsibility for this supervision between the two state entities.

As part of the agreement, the Swedish Consumer Agency (KO) will be responsible for ensuring that Swedish gambling firms advertise in a “moderate” way, and that any players who self-exclude under the Spelpaus self-exclusion regime are not targeted with direct advertising.

KO will also be charged with making sure that advertisements meet the required standards concerning the display of age appropriate warnings and problem gambling support links.

The Swedish Gambling Authority (SGA) will be responsible for ensuring that licensed operators display the correct information on licensed services, bonus offers and will retain oversight of sponsorship agreements by Swedish gambling firms with external entities.

Andreas Prochazka, head of Unit at KO believes the provides an extra level of security for the consumer. “Regardless of whether the consumers turn to the Swedish Consumer Agency or the Gaming Inspectorate with tips or notifications, they know that the case ends up right,” Prochazka added.

The move follows the appointment of both regulators to oversee marketing, as part of a wider clampdown on so-called “aggressive” marketing by gambling companies, unveiled by Swedish Minister of Civil Affairs, Ardalan Sherakabi in February.

As part of this clampdown, gambling firms have been asked to observe “moderation” in marketing, a term which has yet to be explicitly defined by either regulator.

Seeking to address this issue, the SGA have said they will use case law to determine how this issue is dealt with in the long term and have backed KO’s position in several Patent and Market Court cases.

Warning operators not to market aggressively, the SGA said it will issue penalty notices and warnings to operators who are not moderate in their marketing and have threatened to strip any repeat violators of their licences.

Explaining the type of sanction which will be used, the SGA highlighted several different factors, such as how long the infringement has been going on. “The licensee’s actions in the supervisory matter of the Consumer Agency can also be of importance,” the SGA added.

Last week, KO confirmed that it had completed regulatory investigations of advertising by seven gambling operators including 888 Sweden, Gaming Innovation Group, Cherry AB and Hero Gaming. In all seven cases, no further action was taken against the operators by the advertising regulator.