Bingo Association Successfully Bans Camelot Advertisement
10/07/08 16:23 Filed in: Bingo News
A recent advertisement for National Lottery operator, Camelot was banned after claims of denigration by the Bingo Association. Camelot attempted to assert the claim that they were merely trying to poke fun at their gaming competitors instead of attack the already injured bingo industry in a reputation damaging or insidious manner.
The advertisement depicts an elderly woman on a mobility scooter driving by a closed bingo hall during a dreary, grey day and shaking her head in dismay. A scratching (meant to mirror an instant card) transitions to her moving a fancy, flame-throwing scooter up a sunny beach and smiling while she wears fancy new jewelry and clothing. The Bingo Association claimed that the advertisement was taking advantage of the hard times that clubs are already facing and showed players that their new option was to switch to National Lottery cards. As mentioned above, Camelot tried to reverse the notion that they were unfairly damaging bingo’s reputation by promoting claims that their ad was merely showing an early morning hall which hadn’t opened yet.
The Advertising Standards Authority ultimately sided with the Bingo Association and concurred that the advertisement was an unfair indictment of bingo halls. With padlocked doors and the depressing atmosphere of the television spot they determined that the National Lottery was indeed trying to put forth the idea that bingo is a dying industry and banned the ad as misleading and unfair to businesses.
The advertisement depicts an elderly woman on a mobility scooter driving by a closed bingo hall during a dreary, grey day and shaking her head in dismay. A scratching (meant to mirror an instant card) transitions to her moving a fancy, flame-throwing scooter up a sunny beach and smiling while she wears fancy new jewelry and clothing. The Bingo Association claimed that the advertisement was taking advantage of the hard times that clubs are already facing and showed players that their new option was to switch to National Lottery cards. As mentioned above, Camelot tried to reverse the notion that they were unfairly damaging bingo’s reputation by promoting claims that their ad was merely showing an early morning hall which hadn’t opened yet.
The Advertising Standards Authority ultimately sided with the Bingo Association and concurred that the advertisement was an unfair indictment of bingo halls. With padlocked doors and the depressing atmosphere of the television spot they determined that the National Lottery was indeed trying to put forth the idea that bingo is a dying industry and banned the ad as misleading and unfair to businesses.
