Bwin Faces Fine in Denmark for Misleading “Risk-Free” Promotion

(AsiaGameHub) –   Entain’s Bwin brand has been fined in Denmark over a gambling campaign that advertised “risk-free” bets to customers. Beyond being potentially harmful, the campaign was deceptive because the so-called risk-free bets were not truly without risk.  

There Were Some Strings Attached

A $77,200 fine was imposed on Entain’s local subsidiary, ElectraWorks Limited, following a marketing campaign that promised customers “risk-free” bets. The campaign was linked to a promotion enabling players to place wagers of up to DKK 500 ($77) or DKK 1,000 ($154) as “risk-free.”

However, in reality, players were not given actual refunds; instead, they received their lost bet as a free betting token. Moreover, if wagers made using these free betting tokens resulted in a win, only the net difference would be paid out, not the full amount.

This scenario played out for one customer, who placed a DKK 1,000 bet on bwin.dk, lost, and received a free bet. After using the free bet, he won, but the payout was just DKK 15 ($2.32).

A court complaint was then filed, and ElectraWorks ultimately pleaded guilty.

The Company Pleaded Guilty and Was Fined

The initial fine was set at DKK 1 million, considering the seriousness of the violation and that these promotions ran for multiple years, targeting potentially vulnerable groups. However, the penalty was later reduced by half to DKK 500,000 ($77,200) because of various delays.

The fine was calculated based on the funds ElectraWorks allocated to the campaign.

Meanwhile, consumer ombudsman Torben Jensen stressed that when gambling companies claim to offer risk-free gambling, it must be genuinely risk-free and not subject customers to any financial risk.

Consequently, ElectraWorks’ campaign can be deemed clearly misleading, as players were indeed at risk of losing money.