Gambling firm accused of paying blogs to lure new mothers to its online games
A Guardian source has accused Coral, a leading gambling brand in the UK, of paying blogs to recommend new mothers play its online casino games.
The source found that Coral negotiated agreements with parenting bloggers to encourage links to be embedded in posts offering advice, such as how to relieve the stress of caring for a new baby.
One post, about baby food recipes, said: “If as a new mum you can’t leave the house, then why not consider bingo online?”
“You can click here to play Bingo at Coral – this momentary break from childcare can prove beneficial.”
Leading mental health and addiction experts have defined the act as “predatory”.
The Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) guidelines set out that gambling adverts must not be “socially responsible” and must not be presented as a “solution to financial concerns”.
These are all gambling adverts hiding in full light of day, it may be less apparent to someone new to gambling that these messages are there encouraging people to take up gambling for the first time.
Entain, the owner of Coral, said that the articles had been posted between 2014 and 2016 and that they would be taken down as soon as possible.
A spokesperson for the company said: “Neither Coral nor any Entain brand actively targets young mothers or any other potentially vulnerable group through the use of affiliate marketing.”
Adding that the company was, “unable to prevent third parties from linking to our gambling sites”.
NHS England’s national mental health director, Claire Murdoch, commented that:
“It’s cynical for gambling firms to target new and single mums at a time in their lives when they may be suffering stress, sleep deprivation and issues which make them particularly vulnerable.
This is yet another example of predatory behaviour from a gambling industry which is worth billions each year – while at the same time the NHS is investing more than ever before in mental health support for new mothers."
The director of the National Problem Gambling Clinic, Henrietta Bowden-Jones, said:
“The direct targeting of new mothers by embedding a bingo advert in a page about baby food recipes is deeply disturbing and should be called out.
“Gambling is not a way out of psychological distress and these embedded messages are taking advantage of people’s circumstances knowing they may be at home alone for far longer periods than ever experienced."
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Gambling firm accused of paying blogs to lure new mothers to its online games