KSA Fines Bingoal €400K for Targeting Young Adults in Ads

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The Netherlands gambling regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has announced it has fined Bingoal Nederland BV, the online gaming operator, €400,000 for a breach of betting rules in the region.

KSA has found Bingoal guilty of targeting young adults aged between 18 to 24 in a series of advertisements which is illegal in the Netherlands.

The Dutch Betting and Gaming Act covers the targeting of young adults in Article 2 and layouts that gaming operators should not direct adverts to the under-24 age group. The reason for this is that KSA has identified that the young adult age group is seen by the regulators to be one of the most at-risk age groups.

This fine relates to advertisements sent out in an email campaign by Bingoal to its customer base. Bingoal claimed it did not target 18 to 24-year-olds but was part of a mass email campaign by the operator to promote its services. However, KSA pointed out that engaging young adults, deemed as being in an at-risk category, was still a contravention of the Gaming Act.

When talking about the size of the fine, KSA highlighted it had been broken down into two parts, with €350,000 for the breach of the rules in the Netherlands and the other €50,000 because of the length of time that Bingoal was breaking the rules.

In a statement, KSA explained why gaming operators could not advertise to young adults, commenting. “That is not allowed because young adults are a vulnerable target group. The brains of young people are still developing. As a result, they are extra susceptible to gambling addiction.”

The KSA has been investigating gaming operators in the Dutch jurisdiction making sure their adverts are targeted to customers aged 24 and over. The fine given to Bigoal is the latest fine issued to gaming operators who have breached the Dutch Betting and Gaming Act rules.

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