New York Gambling Regulator Approves New Rules for Betting Ads

The gambling regulator in New York, the New York State Gaming Commission, greenlighted new rules affecting sports betting marketing, promotions and advertising in the state. The announcement came Monday following a meeting of the regulator where the new rules received unanimous approval by the Commission. Now, the rules would go through a 60-day period for public comment. During that time, changes to the rules may be made and at the end of the period, the regulator would have the final word.

A major part of the changes revolves around restricting options for marketing and advertising to underage individuals. Ultimately, the new rules seek to restrict sports betting ads from being appealing in any way to people under the legal age for wagering, including children.

The announcement comes after one year and two months have passed since the launch of statewide mobile sports betting activities. Under the new rules, sports betting companies will be prohibited from advertising or promoting their services via university-owned or college-owned news outlets or assets. This means that university radios, newspapers or other communications channels owned by colleges or universities cannot be used for advertising by sports wagering operators.

Betting Ads Cannot Target Kids

Another part of the rules changes the design of the sports betting ads. This means that under the new rules, those ads cannot be designed in a way that appeals to anyone under the legal age for wagering in New York. Depicting entertaining music or cartoon characters that may seem appealing to the younger demographic is also prohibited under the new rules.

Not unexpectedly, the rules prohibit the use of brand names, trademarks and logos or messages for kids’ toys, games, clothes, or equipment that is being used by children. “To the extent that promotional products carry sports wagering messages or brand information, a sports pool licensee and its employees shall use commercially reasonable efforts to distribute such products only to those who have reached the legal age for sports wagering,” state the new rules.

Similarly, the sports betting ad rules prohibit the depiction of underage persons, as well as endorsements from underage persons. This means that the betting operators won’t be able to collaborate with kids or include endorsements from kids in their advertising materials.

Ultimately, the new rules seek to protect the younger demographic and ensure an effective regulatory framework that prohibits the operators from targeting or engaging with children when offering services. Besides the new rules, the Commission confirmed that there is an increased interest in the three new casino licenses for downstate venues.