Consumer complaint against Hollywood Bets advert 'targeting old people', dismissed

A consumer who complained that a Hollywood Bets advert on television targeted vulnerable and gullible old people has lost. 

The consumer in their complaint said that the advert portrayed how online gambling will lead to financial and social success. 

The television adverts show an older man in a shop, looking at his phone, where he is using the Hollywoodbets app.

An image of a roulette wheel is shown and the word “Win” pops out of the phone.

The man fist bumps the air, exclaiming “ha-hey!” and singing and dancing. 

He carries on into a residential road, where a woman overlooking the street from a balcony also joins in the dance. She then shouts, off camera, “Hollywood, here we come!”

The advert then cuts to screen text that reads: “300+ millionaires’ tickets in 2023. Fastest withdrawals in SA. Hollywood Bets.” A voiceover says: “More people feeling like a million bucks. More of the time."

In their response, Hollywood Bets said the advert is cheerful and upbeat.

"His happiness does not directly suggest that online gambling leads to financial or social success.

"At no point does the ad indicate that those around him are aware of the reason for his joy, at no point are they privy to him gambling, or the outcome of his gambling as they are in different locations."

The complaint falls under the Gambling Code Appendix which states that Advertising for a gambling device, activity, premises, or website must not contain claims that imply that people who gamble will experience personal, financial, or social success. 

In its decision, the Directorate said that while the advert in question depicts a “win”, which leads to the featured man’s good mood, the amount of the winnings is not specified and the reasons for the man’s joyful dance are not conveyed to the people who sing and dance with him. 

"There are restrictions around the advertising of gambling, which is a vice and can lead to social harm, so the Directorate considered very carefully whether the Commercial had made any claim that implied “that people who gamble will experience personal, financial or social success.”

In conclusion, the Directorate did note that the woman on the balcony called out, “Hollywood, here we come!”

"While this is a clever play on the Advertiser’s name, in the context of the story she is simply complimenting him on his singing.

"There is no implication that he will go to Hollywood as the result of his win."

And ruled that the advert was not in breach of the code.  

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