A TV campaign for a Sky-branded casino has been banned for using a “roulette rock star” character that glamorises gambling.
The TV ad for Sky Vegas, part of a group of companies including Sky Bet and Sky Poker in which Rupert Murdoch’s pay-TV group holds a minority stake, featured an everyman character called Michael who transforms into a betting legend when he gambles.
“This morning he was doing his recycling,” runs the voiceover, “but right now he’s in Sky Vegas. And here, he’s the roulette rock star riding an electric riff of red and black.”
The Advertising Standards Authority received a complaint that the TV ad glamorised gambling.
Bonne Terre, which trades as Sky Vegas, said that Michael only felt like a rock star because of the excitement of playing on the casino site.
“There was no reference or inference that he was, indeed, a musician whose abilities were enhanced and became a better musician or ‘rock star’ because of his gambling,” said the company. “‘Michael’ remained the same person with the same everyday qualities … he only felt like a ‘rock star’ because of the excitement of playing at Sky Vegas.”
The ASA disagreed and said that when Michael – who is introduced as having just put out his recycling – gambles, he is depicted as “exuding the confidence, personality and qualities of a rock star and improved his self-image”.
“Although no physical transformation was depicted, we considered the ad implied a distinct change in Michael because he was playing roulette on Sky Vegas – taking the character from ‘everyday Michael’ to ‘rock star Michael’,” said the ASA, which banned the TV campaign. “Therefore, we concluded that the ad suggested that gambling would enhance the personal qualities of those gambling.”
