New Bill Introduced in New Jersey Targeting Gambling Advertising

A new piece of legislation was introduced recently by Senator Joseph P. Cryan, connected to the New Jersey casino gaming industry. S4021 seeks to regulate advertising by casinos and sportsbooks, ensuring that the vulnerable are not affected by fraudulent or dishonest promotions. The main goal is to protect minors and those who are self-excluded from services.

In the new measure, Senator Cryan provides insight into how casino and sports betting advertising would be regulated. The industry is booming right with ads everywhere you look. Whether you are online or traveling around the state, you will see or hear some gambling advertising.

The new regulations would stop operators and advertisers from using promotional tactics that are considered fraudulent or dishonest. Any advertisement in the state must not target individuals on self-exclusion lists or minors.

The measure would create guidelines that commercials must follow to ensure the prohibitions are followed. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement has strict rules in place to protect players and promote the industry. Operators would have even more guidance with the legislation to ensure no promotions affect players negatively.

One issue the measure may face is that the bill language does not indicate fraudulent or deceptive conduct. This would need to be established so that operators would know the protocols that constitute such behavior via advertisements.

No major specifics have been revealed involving the Senate bill just yet. However, we do expect that the focus will be on stopping online casinos and sportsbooks from offering promotions that state ‘free bet’ or ‘risk-free’ deals.

Other states, including Massachusetts and Ohio, are already taking action on such wording. Most deals with such terminology have terms and conditions showing the risk or playthrough requirements involved. Still, novice bettors might not understand the full risk and only see the enticing advertisement. In states where the laws are now enacted, stiff fines are in place to ensure that operators do not falter.

One such violation can be seen in Ohio involving DraftKings. The Ohio Casino Control Commission named the brand at the beginning of the year for violating regulations. The brand did not post a responsible gambling message on the platform. Players should be able to see this information readily to be able to know how to seek help if needed.

DraftKings was also accused of using words like ‘risk-free’ and ‘free bet’ when advertising. The company had to pay a fine of $150,000 for the incident. An additional $350,000 fine was issued for advertising sent to minors.

Senator Cryan sees his New Jersey measure as a way to shield vulnerable groups from gambling negatives, such as gambling underage or accessing services while self-excluded. These are the most vulnerable groups that need to be protected.

Such protective measures must be in place, especially if the industry does not want to receive pushback from opponents. For years, those who are against gambling expansions or iGaming have stressed the issue of gambling addiction and minor participation.

If problems persist, we may see opponents come out in full force to try to see even more changes made.

The new measure was introduced at a time when New Jersey had just launched new responsible gambling tools. The state has a new telephone hotline (1-833-788-4DGE) and a new video conference option that allows players to sign up for self-exclusion.

Players can choose to use the new tools to opt out of iGaming, land-based betting, or both. The goal was to provide simple tools anyone could use from home rather than traveling to self-exclude.