Gambling ads shown to Finnish viewers, but they are illegal here
I, as well as some other users, have recently noticed that Twitch has started showing online casino advertisements to Finnish viewers.
Advertisement of any kind of lottery games or gambling is very strictly limited by law in mainland Finland, only being allowed for one government-owned company and only within very specific guidelines and situations. For example, any games that have a risk of causing addictions can only be advertised within the casinos themselves; never on TV, magazines, outdoors etc.
These ads come up on nearly every stream as pre-rolls if I view them in an incognito window, regardless of whether the viewer is asked about their age through the mature content warning. This technically means that gambling is also advertised to minors, due to minimum age of Twitch being 13 years.
There are so many things wrong in this, that something needs to happen. "It's the Internet" is not an excuse, as any viewer's IP address can be very reliably located into a specific country to be able to target the ads correctly and not break the laws. And I'm not even using a VPN that could mask my country of origin, so that's not an excuse either.
For a comparison, back in late 2021, Eurosport was told by the Finnish Police Board to stop showing gambling ads on their Finnish TV channels, with an 800'000€ fine waiting for them if they were to continue. Showing gambling ads in video format during a live stream is very much comparable to ad breaks during a live TV broadcast of a real life sports event, so these ads seem very much illegal.
I am also considering reporting this to Finnish authorities for investigation.
MrBeldin
shared this idea
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robertelliott1
commented
I think gambling ads shown to Finnish viewers raise important questions about consumer protection and responsible marketing. While entertainment and choice are valuable, it’s essential to consider how these messages influence vulnerable people and young audiences. The debate around regulation continues, and many believe stricter guidelines are needed to balance industry interests with public health concerns. https://casino-portugal.pt/pt/ should be presented with caution, ensuring transparency and responsible messaging standards are upheld. Finnish regulators must work with advertisers to prioritize ethical practices and protect citizens from potentially harmful influences.
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davidandersonhad
commented
In general, I agree and am also against such advertising. But I was interested in conducting my own research on this matter. I found an interesting opinion from experts from https://gamblizard.ca/ researching the casino market. So, according to statistics, such advertising does not play any role and in most cases, those who do not want it - they will not react to such advertising. Only those who are interested in it pay attention. In any case, if you put pressure on Twitch, the advertising will stop. Apparently, they have not done this yet.
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jasicarose75
commented
Does twitch belong to Finland?
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NastyTJ
commented
This indeed is illegal in Finland.
Source for Twitch Staff: https://poliisi.fi/en/marketing-gambling
Finnish police.