Liberalised online gambling in France is catching everyone’s eye


5/12/10 – According to Rapid TV News, the French television regulator CSA is about to publish its conclusions regarding the conduct and framework within which online gambling operators will be permitted to advertise to the French market.
 
The regulator says it will present its findings between June 1 and 15, following extensive consultations with a range of professional and interested parties over the past several months.
 
TV News opines that the CSA will have to choose from various options, three directly involving French television.
 
The first option may be to ban advertising and sponsorship on weekdays in the early morning, midday and late afternoon, access and prime time slots.
 
The second option might be to ban advertising from 5:00am to 10:30pm, and the third choice is to forbid advertising in those periods, but grant ‘exceptional authorisations’ for sport events and horse races, five minutes before and after programmes.
 
Like the French gambling regulator ARJEL, the CSA says its goals include shielding minors from gambling advertising, and ensuring  that operators do not pitch their promotions in a way that may appeal to the under-aged.
 
The proposals currently under consideration have apparently stirred the anger of private channels and radio stations, which have denounced the rules as too strict.