ASA Orders Social Casinos to Take Down Misleading Ads

The United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has reprimanded five advertisers for misleading social casino ads. The sponsored ads were aired on TikTok and were falsely implying that people could win real money when that was not the case.

The Ads Were Misleading, According to the ASA

The five companies that got reprimanded by the regulator are Zeroo Gravity Games, SpinX Games, Mobee Co, Huuuge Global and Dataverse. The advertisers, according to the ASA, misled customers with their ads, enticing them with alleged promises of tangible rewards.

In fact, the five operators offered social casino games, which emulate casino content without involving actual money. However, the ASA determined that some of the ads for these companies’ products implied that players could win money or prizes.

The ASA emphasized that the ads left multiple consumers believing they could win rewards, which constitutes a violation of the UK’s advertising laws.

The ASA challenged whether the ads misleadingly implied that the social casino games were gambling products in which real-world money or tangible prizes could be won and withdrawn.

The ASA ruled that the ads in question must be taken down and can no longer appear in their current form. The regulator reiterated its intention to continue monitoring the social casino sector closely, ensuring that companies within this area.

This investigation is in line with the ASA’s broader monitoring of gambling and gambling-like ads.

The Five Companies Were Asked to Take Down the Ads

Zeroo Gravity, for context, had aired two ads that violated ASA’s rules. The first of them advertised the social casino app Cash Tornado and promised “extremely high payouts.” The second advertised the social casino game app Jackpot Masters and similarly offered huge payouts.

SpinX, on the other hand, aired two TikTok ads, one of which also implied that players could score “massive wins.”

Mobee Co, meanwhile, advertised the social casino app Ignite Classic Slots on TikTok. The ads included large texts reading “BIG WINS” and “SUPER WIN,” potentially confusing viewers that they could win real money.

Huuuge Global promoted its Billionaire Casino app via two ads, which alleged that players could win a “HUUUGE jackpot” or “BIGGER PRIZES.”

Lastly, Dataverse was ordered to take down three TikTok ads for its namesake platform. The operator’s ads featured enthusiastic players who expressed excitement about winning huge jackpots on the platform.