Betfred, a UK bookmaker company has started airing television ads promoting slots and gambling products on Britain’s SkyTV. They have previously utilized the medium to promote other products but this was the first time they used television advertising for casino games.
This is due to the fact that many people are unaware of their other deals which forced them to get the aid of the television media to pronounce what they wanted the viewers to know. The company’s commercial director, Rakesh Chablani said, “We wanted to make punters aware that we have a far bigger offering than just sports betting and we have some of the best and instantly recognizable branded games and slots such as Monopoly, Deal or No Deal and Gladiator, as well as offline favorites like Rainbow Riches and Cleopatra. There are currently over £3 million worth of jackpots on offer and we even have real dealers in the live casino.”
However, Betfred wasn’t the first one to air television advertisements. Many big companies have done it before. They were just the latest. Gaming industry giants such as Poker Stars and Bodog have long utilized the television and made it a major part of their larger marketing efforts.
There had been an issue in Germany about the kind of TV commercial Poker Stars run. The country banned it because what the company portrayed in the commercial was the opposite of what they wanted the audience to know. In the commercial, they depicted card players killing each other during a game. This commercial was made to promote the safety of playing with Poker Stars, which was enigmatic for some as the game played in the said company would still be poker, nothing different to what the depicted card players played. It wasn’t a bad commercial; it just didn’t suit some cultures and one of it was Germany which dubbed the commercial as “too violent”.
Poker Stars knew that their commercial would be no doubt controversial but they ran it anyway because they believe that in advertising, any publicity is good publicity. A source said, “Any commercial that’s noteworthy enough to catch a governmental ban clearly falls in the latter category.”
Another ‘different’ advertisement was run by PokerRoom.com showing a man playing strip Russian Roulette with a beautiful woman. Ads like these were said to be a useful publicity tool even though they don’t hit the airwaves, even so, these could be aired via video streaming sites like YouTube. It was said that YouTube could be a perfect medium for brand building ads.
Betfred however, was a licensed UK film that wouldn’t go through risqué advertising unless they really needed to. That said their current advertising wasn’t one of those banned and controversial gaming ads on television.
[Source: Casino Affiliate Programs]
