Slow and steady: New rules for radio gambling ads

Updated taglines for gambling ads on radio will have to be read at a slow, calm pace under new advertising requirements for online betting companies.

As part of federal government moves to tackle problem gambling, companies will soon be forced to include new warnings on all their advertisements about the risks of placing a bet.

The “gamble responsibly” tagline currently appearing on advertisements will be replaced with seven new options, which the Albanese government says have been widely researched.

The new taglines include:

“Chances are you’re about to lose”

“Imagine what you could be buying instead”

“You win some. You lose more”

“What’s gambling really costing you?”

Companies have been notified that the words in the tagline must be “read slowly, calmly and with an even pace” for radio purposes.

There are already strict rules in place for gambling ads on radio.

From April next year, such ads will need to carry a caution about gambling, and information on how to seek help.

The federal government has detailed how the taglines must be included in advertisements across TV, video, radio, digital, social media, print and websites, with only certain taglines permitted to be used across each platform.

In order to avoid ‘message fatigue,’ companies have also been told they need to rotate through the taglines over 12 months.