A communications regulator in Italy has fined Twitch and Google a total of more than 3 million euros ($3.3 million) for violating the country’s gambling advertising ban. [Image: Shutterstock.com]
Significant penalties
A communications regulator in Italy has fined Twitch and Google a total of more than €3 million for gambling advertising violations. YouTube, owned by Google, must pay a fine of 2.3 million euros ($2.5 million), while Twitch faces a fine of 900,000 euros ($982,251).
called on both parties to remove over 20,000 videos
The Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni (AGCOM) also called on both parties to remove over 20,000 videos promoting various forms of gambling and to ensure that similar problems do not arise in the future. It was noted that the two companies have video makers on their platforms who present gambling content that is not allowed in Italy.
A track record of violations
Google has already been fined in Italy for similar offenses. AGCOM ordered the company to pay €750,000 ($818,543) in August 2022 and €100,000 ($109,139) in October 2020 for advertising violations.
The company successfully appealed against both fines. A court ruled in September in the 750,000 euro ($818,543) case that the company was not liable for the ads because it is a hosting provider and has certain protections in place.
AGCOM also examined TikTok in its recent investigation and concluded that any gambling content was not the platform’s fault. As a result, TikTok avoided a fine.
Blanket ban on gambling advertising
Italy introduced a complete ban on gambling advertising in July 2018. This has had an impact on operators who rely on marketing messages to attract new customers.
People in Italy spend around 25 billion euros on black market gambling every year
A report in October by local newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport showed that people in Italy spend about 25 billion euros ($27 billion) a year on black market gambling. This means that the country loses around 1 billion euros in tax revenue every year due to illegal offers.
These findings led the European Gaming and Betting Association to call on Italian lawmakers to roll back the blanket ban on gambling advertising so people can learn more about legitimate options.
