The UK’s advertising regulator has expanded its scope to cover social media promotions by gambling operators licensed in Britain, even if those firms are headquartered abroad.
The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP), which sets the UK advertising codes, confirmed that its rules now extend to unpaid online marketing directed at UK audiences by any licensee required to comply with the CAP Code.
Oversight will still be handled by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the independent body responsible for enforcing CAP’s rules and issuing rulings on advertisements.
In effect, the update mainly impacts licensed gambling operators using social media to reach UK consumers while not holding a registered business address in the country.
CAP mentioned:
The amendment ensures all marketing communications targeted at UK consumers by licensed gambling operators are regulated and held to account by the same body.
The Gambling Commission’s licensing conditions require compliance with the CAP Code and allow the ASA Council to rule consistently on such ads by any authorised gambling operator no matter where they are based.
Previously, some organic posts on international platforms, such as social media, fell into a regulatory grey area, leaving room for enforcement gaps.
CAP emphasized that the update is not anticipated to affect industries outside the gambling sector.
