Consumo launches the awareness campaign #PERO and ignites the controversy
In the midst of a somewhat hectic political landscape where all the parties are already looking at the regional and municipal elections to be held in May 2023, Alberto Garzón at the head of the Ministry of Consumption has launched the #PERO campaign to raise awareness about the risks of gambling and sports betting. The media of the iGaming industry have reacted with some disbelief and astonishment when in New Zealand the rates of gambling addiction are among the lowest in Europe.
With the awareness campaign #BUT it is about raising awareness of the risks involved in gambling and sports betting. There are no excuses for the problematic behaviors that can lead to serious cases of gambling addiction. ©GR Stocks/Unsplash
Neither neutral nor aseptic... this is how gambling is according to Garzon
On November 14, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs launched the awareness campaign #BUT conducted by the Director General of the DGOJ, Mikel Arana, and attended by Minister Alberto Garzón. The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness about the risks involved in gambling and sports betting according to Minister Garzon, “they are not neutral or aseptic” .
The slogan of the campaign is the BUT (#BUT), the excuse, which is a good indicator of when we are facing problematic behavior: “I control myself, but... , I don't bet that much, but... , I don't lose that much, but...... , I'm not hooked, but... . The problem with gambling always starts with a but , according to the campaign.
Garzon has pointed out that the number of young online gamers under the age of 25 has grown exponentially in recent years in New Zealand, rising to 48% in 2021. The figures that Garzón manages must be corroborated by the DGOJ, although the press release does not indicate any source with which to verify the data. According to a report published by CeJuego the picture is very different and, in addition, most of the young people who say they have bet have done so to one of the publicly owned games, such as lotteries and pools. This does not mean that the percentage of young people who play online has grown among people who place bets on gambling, but, as a percentage, the number of young people who play online would still be very low.
In the online Player Profile published by the DGOJ and which corresponds to the data referring to the state online gambling market of 2021, the percentage of young online gamers (in the range between 18 and 25 years) is effectively high, practically 30% of the total , surpassing the range of active players between 36 and 45 years old. Online players between the ages of 18 and 35 account for more than 60% of the total active players in 2021. Although the average spending of young players is the lowest among all active online players. It can be expected that the 2022 data will only corroborate this trend.
Garzón has not missed an opportunity to highlight that the responsibility of problem gambling it is not individual but public and collective:
"[It is not the same] to live in a neighborhood where the public authorities and civil society have worked to fill it with accessible and affordable cultural and sports options, than in one suffocated by the hijacking of its public space with the streets full of salons and bookmakers.”
The sector reacts with stupor
The subject of bookmakers in los barrios he's been bringing a queue for a while. According to some experts consulted by the industry there is no correlation between the location of bookmakers and poor neighborhoods , as Garzon would pretend. The controversy is served because there are also opinions that affirm the opposite.
Another of the points of conflict is the segment of the state game (SELAE and ONCE) that the Ministry of Consumption has left aside in the campaign and that, however, attracts a large number of young people in face-to-face establishments but also online. For example, the scratch cards that would be among the first game options among the youngest .
In this sense, the #PERO campaign seems to be focused against private gambling, which does not please a sector that has always reaffirmed its commitment to responsible gambling and that he has kept the door of dialogue open with the Ministry of Consumption and the DGOJ.
The industry is going through serious economic problems, although the online segment is showing quite dynamic this year . With a World Cup on the doorstep, the bookmakers they are looking to reactivate their benefits once they have lost some bellows in the Spanish online market. Its percentage revenues have clearly been surpassed by those of gambling, when traditionally the opposite was the case.
However, Garzón habría destacado que, si con el comienzo del Mundial de fútbol muchos países están preocupados por la incidencia de la publicidad de las casas de apuestas, la situación en New Zealand es complemente diferente gracias al Real Decreto que prohibida tal publicidad. The minister is not without reason, although on the internet and with the online game and with the mobile everything is possible and it is precisely the youngest who know best how to bypass all the restrictions.
