Macau is moving towards revamping its 30-year-old advertising laws, including some changes which will significantly impact gambling as well.
According to Yau Yun Wah, Director of the Economic and Technological Development Bureau, current regulations fail to address the rapid advancements in information technology and media communications.
As a result, Wah and his team have formulated a proposal which would aim to bring the advertising framework up to standard for the digital world. Public consultations on the draft law began on 4 July and will continue until 2 August.
The outcome is highly critical for the gambling sector in the area, especially for the land-based industry as Macau is the only place in China where physical gambling is allowed, while betting on racing and football is allowed in Hong Kong.
The amendments suggest introducing an explicit ban on all gambling-related adverts, including bonus incentives and marketing that “evokes association with gambling activities”.
Current law allows for companies to use promotions strictly within designated casino areas, but it remains to be seen how this would change if the proposal is to be accepted.
And while gambling is not the sole focus of the draft, but rather the whole Macau advertising landscape, the amendments do reference different gambling laws regarding marketing and explore the idea of consolidating them for more clarity.
The draft also leaves the door open for a potential increase in the fines imposed for violations, without pointing out a specific amount. Instead, it suggests that the penalty sizes should reflect concurrent financial trends in Macau such as inflation and other changes in the economy.
Given that the region was recently placed on Donald Trump’s ‘foreign adversaries’ list which has the potential to stifle international investments in Macau, breaking the gambling advertising could prove much more costly in the future.
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