The Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has launched a consultation to gather feedback from French citizens on gambling perception and operators’ promotional strategies. The consultation aims to assess the effectiveness of ANJ’s powers to regulate advertising and determine if new measures are needed to protect vulnerable individuals, especially the youth.
ANJ initiated this consultation following its strong criticism of French gambling operators for excessive advertising during the Euro 2020 football tournament. The regulator held a meeting with operators in July and stated that the advertising had crossed a line. ANJ found several campaigns to have an excessive volume of ads and believed that some campaigns disproportionately targeted younger players.
In response, ANJ announced a five-point action plan to address these concerns, including regular reviews of licensees’ ads and the implementation of stricter marketing guidelines by the end of 2021. ANJ cited a survey conducted by Harris Interactive during Euro 2020, which indicated that more than half of those who saw sports betting ads believed there were too many advertisements on above the line channels. Additionally, nearly eight in ten respondents believed that the volume of advertising could contribute to increased levels of gambling addiction in France.
The consultation process consists of an online questionnaire followed by two citizen dialogue workshops held in different regions of the country. These workshops will assess the acceptability of gambling advertising and discuss potential changes to existing regulations, particularly regarding the protection of young people from such ads. ANJ will also solicit input from operators, healthcare professionals, public authorities, associations, and other stakeholders through discussions and workshops.
The gathered contributions will be used by ANJ to develop a plan that identifies the most pressing issues, formalize new advertising guidelines, and propose new regulations if necessary. ANJ President Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin emphasized the importance of involving all stakeholders in reaching a consensus on refining and enhancing controls on gambling advertising.
The action taken by ANJ reflects its commitment to a socially responsible approach to regulation since it replaced the L’Autorité de régulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL) as France’s sole gambling regulator. ANJ has already addressed the advertising practices of former monopoly operators, La Française des Jeux and Pari-Mutuel Urbain, and established a five-pillar strategy for regulating the industry over the next three years. The primary goal of this strategy is to ensure that gambling continues to contribute significantly to French society while maintaining high levels of consumer protection.
ANJ’s consultation seeks to gather diverse perspectives and reach a consensus on striking an acceptable balance between gambling advertising and responsible play. The regulator aims to make balanced and effective recommendations based on this collaborative approach.
