Gambling Ads Doubled in the Netherlands

Strong online gambling regulations can make or break a local gambling scene. Case in point – since the Netherlands officially legalised and started regulating remote betting in the country, the industry’s presence skyrocketed. As per Nielsen, a top data and market measurement company, the presence of advertisements relating to gambling has doubled in the two months since the new legislation came into effect.

Advertisement in a Newly-Legal Market

Nielsen is a fairly well-known firm dealing with market shares and trends. Their research on the matter of online gambling in the Netherlands was fairly simple. They measured the prevalence of gambling ads and promotions in October and November 2020, which added up to 170,066 commercials.

On October 1 2021, new Dutch legislation went into effect, finally allowing and regulating online gambling. A new regulative body known as NOGA was established to oversee the market and grant licenses. Only 10 licenses were initially granted, but that number grew significantly in the meantime.

About two months later, Nielsen again counted how many commercials appeared across Dutch media. The numbers jumped up to a staggering 366,631 in October and November 2021 – more than double than the previous year.

Broader Audiences, Higher Targets

This massive increase is mostly attributed to the fact that online casinos are considerably more accessible than their brick-and-mortar counterparts. Moreover, the trend of moving online has been noted across the world, and online casinos in the Netherlands are hoping to cash in on the trend. Holland Casino is the most notable leader in this aspect with an estimated €6.4m spent on advertisements alone.

Gambling ads are highly regulated in traditional media. For example, they can only appear on television at certain times to prevent minors from being exposed. However, according to Nielsen, over 88% of gambling ads appear online. This includes social media, which is not nearly as regulated as TV.

Reportedly, NOGA wants operators and groups from across the online and offline sectors to come together and agree on a workable advertising code.