Buenos Aires seeks to ban influencers from promoting gambling
Provincial deputies Fabián Luayza and Viviana Romano presented a bill to tighten advertising limits for online betting platforms in the province of Buenos Aires, focusing on preventing the participation of influencers and athletes in content that could affect minors. The initiative modifies the Gaming Law sanctioned in 2001 and incorporates an express prohibition for operators authorized by the provincial government to contract influencers, content creators, streamers, professional athletes, artists, public figures, or sports institutions in advertising campaigns and marketing actions.
The restriction applies to sponsored content, promotional publications, discount codes, affiliate links, commercial mentions, exchanges, and any other form of direct or indirect promotion of online betting platforms. According to the legislators, the current regulations govern advertising related to authorized operators but do not expressly contemplate these forms of indirect promotion, which today constitute one of the main mechanisms for attracting new young users.
The text also proposes to prevent the use of visual elements, sounds, characters, expressions, or resources especially attractive to minors under 18, as well as their dissemination in digital spaces, events, or content primarily aimed at children or adolescents. In parallel, it obliges authorized operators to implement reinforced identity and age verification mechanisms. The enforcement authority could require biometric validation, multi-factor authentication, facial recognition, electronic document verification, and interoperability with official registries to block access for minors.
This verification must be maintained throughout the account's validity through periodic revalidation procedures, random checks, and additional authentication mechanisms for operations considered risky. If a company detects or has reasonable indications that an account belongs to a minor, it must suspend it preventively, block new gaming operations, and take necessary measures to prevent irregular access.
Failure to comply with the obligations would lead to warnings, fines, or temporary suspension of the operating authorization, depending on the severity of the infraction, its recurrence, and the damage caused, while serious or repeat offenses could result in the revocation of the license. The proposal joins another presented days ago by deputy Alejandra Lorden, which also aims to restrict online gambling advertising, but from the mental health angle, with the creation of a provincial fund for child and adolescent mental health and the expansion of early detection, prevention, and assistance protocols for minors who gamble in digital environments.
Tags: Fabián Luayza, Viviana Romano, Buenos Aires province, biometric age verification