Online gambling company Sportsbet has been forced to remove an advertisement found to encourage using a phone while driving, by Australia's advertising complaints handling body Ad Standards.
The television ad depicts a man watching racing on his phone while on a golf course.
A voice-over: "Nobody does it easier than Tee Time Tim Callaghan. He streams Sky Racing on the Sportsbet app. All while tackling the Southern Hemisphere's scariest slice. Yep. Whether he's driving a buggy or trying to dig one out of a bunker, this Sultan of swing doesn't miss a second."
The complaint submitted to Ad Standards was concerned for driving safety.
"Bloke looking at phone while playing golf. Commentary with words to the effect - you'll never miss a thing whether you're taking a swing or driving a (golf) buggy... my complaint is that people are being encouraged to use a phone while driving a conveyance," the complaint stated.
"I acknowledge the golf course is not a road however, the advertisement sends the wrong message about driving and road safety."
Sportsbet ad via Ad Standards.
Sportsbet disagreed with any suggestion that the advertisement breached the Advertising Standards Code.
"The intent of the advertisement is to be portrayed as humorous and light-hearted and does not actually depict any person driving a golf buggy and watching Sky Racing at the same time or using a mobile phone (rather, the main character in the Advertisement Tee Time Tim, is a passenger in a golf buggy)," Sportsbet stated.
However, the Ad Standards panel found that the voice-over described the character as watching racing on his phone while driving, and this created the overall impression that the man uses his phone while driving the buggy.
While the man was not depicted as driving while using his mobile phone, the overall impression is that he does do so.
As a result, the ad was found to breach AANA Code of Ethics\2.6 health and safety.
"While golf buggies are not driven on public roads, care should still be taken when driving them to prevent accidents and injuries," the panel said.
The panel also found the ad to depicted the man engaging in the wagering activity to an excessive degree, being unable or unwilling to put the phone down to play golf with his friends.
"The overall message of the advertisement was that you shouldn’t 'miss a second' of racing," the panel stated.
Finding the ad to also breach AANA Wagering Code\2.8 excess participation.
Sportsbet discontinued use of the video advertisement and removed the advertisement from all media channels including social media pages.
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