With the signing of a majority opinion and a minority opinion, the regulations related to the prevention of gambling addiction, the regulation of gambling, and online betting are now ready to be discussed in the chamber.
Argentina.- A plenary of five committees of the Chamber of Deputies finally took an important step on Wednesday, November 13, to advance the prevention of gambling addiction and the regulation of gambling and online betting by signing the opinions that enable this issue to be discussed in the lower chamber's hall.
After intense work throughout the year and a heated discussion in Wednesday's meeting, two opinions were signed: the majority opinion, supported among others by Union for the Homeland, Federal Encounter, the Civic Coalition, and the left; and the minority opinion, supported by PRO, Freedom Advances, and the UCR. Out of 148 signatures, the majority opinion gathered 90, while the minority had 58.
This was within the framework of the commissions on Prevention of Addictions and Control of Narcotraffic; Social Action and Public Health; Communications and Informatics; Penal Legislation; and Families, Childhood, and Youth, chaired by the deputies Mónica Frade (CC), Pablo Yedlin (UxP), Pablo Carro (UxP), Laura Rodríguez Machado (PRO), and Roxana Reyes (UCR), respectively.
Mónica Frade, chair of the commission on Prevention of Addictions and deputy of the Civic Coalition, said: "I hope it is discussed in the chamber before November 30." With the certainty that the Government does not plan to extend the ordinary sessions, Frade admitted that time is pressing and there are only a few weeks left for the project to advance. If not realized, the opinions will be approved, but for the next parliamentary year.
As the meeting was drawing to a close, deputies Silvana Giudici and Maximiliano Ferraro, representatives of each of the projects, engaged in a harsh counterpoint in which other actors took part and concluded with several of the legislators who were protagonists of the meeting leaving the room.
The differentiating element between one opinion and the other in this case is in Article 8, which appears in the project of the opinion supported by the majority, referring to the prohibition of advertising, promotion, and sponsorship of gambling, sports betting forecasts, and online betting.
This includes platforms and social networks through the Internet, information and communication technologies, audiovisual communication, outdoor advertising, signage in public roads or in private spaces for public use, graphic dissemination media, radio, television, product placement, podcasts, or any other current or future means of communication.
The project stipulates that welcome bonuses for gambling and online betting are prohibited, as well as the sponsorship of sports teams or individual athletes, using their brand or commercial name to identify a sports facility, stadiums, sports academies, recreational centers, public spaces, training centers, the promotion of sports forecasts, and the placement of fixed or digital signage in playing fields and stadiums. Also, their dissemination in artistic or musical festivals and cultural events in general.
Also prohibited is non-traditional advertising (PNT) of gambling, sports betting forecasts, and online betting -defined in the Law of Audiovisual Communication Services N° 26.552-; indirect or hidden advertising in which gambling, sports betting forecasts, and online betting are mentioned through influencers, infomercial programs, and/or the paid or unpaid publication of testimonials from athletes, famous personalities, public figures, or fictional characters that mention them.
In its Article 10, this opinion establishes biometric verification of identity and age. Operators/licensees of online betting games must have on their sites, applications, or web pages, mechanisms, tools, and filters that reliably guarantee the impossibility of access by minors. To this end, they must use Digital Identity Systems (SID) connected to the database of the National Registry of Persons (RENAPER) to validate identity remotely, through facial recognition.
The marketing and/or distribution and/or sale of gambling and online betting must comply with the requirements of responsible gaming. For example, providing the betting user with accurate, complete, and truthful information regarding the type of online game, rules, probability of winning prizes, and other information related to the game operation.
It must have a visible indication of the assistance tool for people with gambling addiction provided by the Enforcement Authority. It must also have mechanisms for identification and prohibition of online gaming for people registered in the ReNA. A system of registration and login must also be established to prevent access by children and adolescents, according to this regulation.
See also: A survey in secondary schools reveals that 1 out of every 4 young people in the City of Buenos Aires made an online bet at least once
Operators/licensees of online gambling and betting sites must include the following warning legends on the access and use interfaces. On the start screen, occupying no less than 50 percent of the entire screen: "Participation of minors is prohibited."
Furthermore, there is an article dedicated to special prohibitions. It prohibits sites and/or platforms of gambling and online betting from implementing loyalty actions or offering online games in the form of binary options and in the form of microtransactions or loot games or those that included the following gamification strategies.
Shareholders, owners, participants, or holders of the game operator, its executive staff, and employees directly involved in the development of gambling and betting may not be bettors on gambling and online betting sites or platforms.
Nor may athletes, coaches, or other direct participants in the event or sports activity on which the bet is made. Judges or referees who exercise their functions in the event or sports activity on which the bet is made, as well as persons who resolve appeals against their decisions.
Those registered in the National Self-Exclusion Regime (ReNA) and those registered in provincial self-exclusion regimes and from the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires are also prohibited.
In its Article 21, the opinion proposes the blocking of unauthorized platforms. In the event of complaints processed by the Enforcement Authority or other natural or legal persons, the competent court may order in summary proceedings the blocking of websites where unauthorized online gambling offers are made, which do not comply with the domain whose denomination is “bet.ar” and/or that which replaces it; or the preventive suspension of authorized online gambling platforms that fail to comply with provisions contained in this law.
Regarding the regulation of payment methods, it establishes debit cards, subject to a daily limit equivalent to the top or daily withdrawal limit set by the bank or financial entity for ATMs; electronic/virtual wallets only with money in account and subject to a daily limit equivalent to the top or daily withdrawal limit set by the bank or financial entity for ATMs. They may not be used with the credit function: ANSeS accounts; credit cards.
Regarding the sanctioning regime, non-compliance with the provisions or transgressions of the prohibitions provided in this law will result in the imposition of a fine equivalent to the unit of purchasing power (UVA) at the time of the sanction, between 500 and one hundred thousand units of purchasing power.
“Those who exploit, manage, operate or in any way organize or administer, by themselves or through third parties, any modality or system of capturing gambling and betting, without having the competent jurisdictional authorization, and those who provide their biometric data, documents, banking data, and/or any information required by the website to participate in betting”, stipulates the text.
Finally, it indicates that when these infractions are directed at minors under 18 years of age; the penalty will be increased by one third of the minimum and maximum, even if there is an authorizing or enabling license.
The deputy Silvana Giudici (PRO) referred to the minority opinion they presented with the support of the UCR and LLA, considering that “the other opinion is too regulatory and extensive, which complicates evaluating the constitutionality of the norm”.
