Snapchat has long been considered the home of the most iconic filters, partnering with brands to launch new products or build hype for new TV shows, but this feature has taken a dark turn with Aussie children reportedly being shown promotional filters for Sportsbet via the app.
Despite attempts from the platform to restrict access to the filter to users under 18, The Guardian is reporting that the filters are appearing on underage accounts when shared directly with them by friends who are 18+. The ads feature Sportsbet logos and links to create a gambling account. B&T understands that the links are disabled for users under 18.
One of the filters transforms the user into a racehorse with a Sportsbet colour-themed rosette, while the other turns users into a presenter with a Sportsbet microphone.
A spokesperson for Snapchat said that advertising policies restrict ads based on users’ age for certain regulated categories, including gambling, which must be targeted to users aged 18+ in Australia.
“Snap makes available sophisticated targeting tools to advertisers to help enable their ads to reach the right audience, and we have a strong track record in ensuring advertising campaigns on Snapchat are viewed by the right audience demographic,” the spokesperson said.
A Sportsbet spokesperson said: “Sportsbet applies 18 plus age gating measures on Snapchat and other social platforms. We take all reasonable steps to ensure our content reaches adult audiences, including restricting anyone under 18 from clicking on a Snapchat image through to any Sportsbet pages”.
Last year, Sportsbet’s chief executive officer, Barni Evans, told a parliamentary inquiry that the brand was at first hesitant to advertise on Snap, which claims to reach 80% of 13-24-year-olds in Australia, over concerns that minors may be exposed to the content.
“My team refused to engage in commercial partnership with Snapchat for, I think, the best part of two years whilst our competitors carried on because we weren’t convinced that at that point in time Snapchat had the reliable age-gating technology,” Evans said.
The news comes just a week after Sportsbet ads were allegedly played between Frozen and Bluey songs on Spotify.
The streaming service ensures gambling ads are only played to 18+ account holders, but concerns have been raised by parents using their own accounts to play music to their children.
“I love Spotify and completely understand your need to generate income,” a complaint on the matter said. “However, playing Sportsbet’s ads before and after Disney songs is inappropriate and potentially damaging to my children.
“My kids love Disney and frequently listen to Moana, Frozen and other songs [including] the Wiggles and Bluey songs, probably not associated nor the first choice for punters.”
Since the complaint was made, Sportsbet has paused all advertising on Spotify.
Gambling advertising in Australia has been a hot topic this year, with the government proposing tighter restrictions, particularly around sporting events and broadcasts, and many calling for a total ban.
Last week, the Office of Communications Minister Michelle Rowland apologised to people harmed by the gambling industry after repeatedly delaying long-awaited reforms to gambling advertising. The apology followed mounting frustration from advocates who say the government is failing to act on recommendations made in a 2022 report by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy, which called for a total ban on wagering ads.
According to emails seen by the The Guardian Australia, Rowland’s office is unable to confirm when it will formally respond to the Murphy report or introduce legislation to tackle the issue, despite earlier promises to do so by the end of 2024.
One email, sent by a staffer from Rowland’s office to Mark Kempster, a former gambling addict and campaigner for reform, acknowledged the significant toll the delays have had on those advocating for change.
“I acknowledge the ongoing toll this is taking on you and others, and I’m personally very sorry that we have not been able to secure an outcome thus far,” the staffer wrote. “As a general observation though, I would note that decisions of this type require the support of the PM and Cabinet—it’s not enough for a Minister to have formed a view”.
“Any changes to legislation would then be introduced to Parliament at the earliest opportunity next year,” the staffer wrote, but admitted they could not provide a revised timeframe. “This process is taking longer than hoped,” they said.
For many Australians affected by gambling addiction, the delay in action is not just a policy failure but a personal disappointment. However many believe that the efforts to ban advertising of this nature are a waste of time.
An independent survey conducted by Bastion for B&T in October with over 350 participants revealed that only 24.65 per cent of participants feel that a ban on gambling advertising will actually work. 51.84 per cent did not believe the proposed ban would work, and 23.51 per cent reported that they were unsure of the potential success of the proposal.
Many respondents who felt that the ban wouldn’t work said that since gambling is an addiction, those who are currently engaged in the practice will likely need more than an advertising block to stop the practice. It was also widely reported that gambling is a tradition and an established practice that is already ingrained in Australian culture and that it would take a massive cultural shift to change that.
With the proposed ban still very much under contention, it is currently up to betting companies and ad platforms to act in a responsible manner to keep young Australians and at-risk gamblers as safe as possible.
B&T understands that Sportsbet has not yet pulled the filters from Snapchat.
