Italian Regulator Fine Meta Ireland $6.5 Million for Gambling Ads on Social Media
Xenia Luch
27 December 2023
Comment 0

The Italian Communications Regulatory Authority (AGCOM) has cracked down on another case of illegal gambling advertising on social media. This time, the culprit is Meta, or more precisely, one of its subsidiaries, Meta Platforms Ireland Limited. The company has been fined €5.85 million (about $6.4 million) for violating the Italian law.
AGCOM’s investigation revealed dozens of cases of promoting “either betting or games with cash prizes” on social media platforms.
The agency found 18 social media profiles (5 on Instagram and 13 on Facebook) that were involved in the illegal activity. It also detected 32 instances of sponsored content placement.
This is not the first time that AGCOM has penalized social media platforms for illegal gambling ads. Just a few weeks ago, the agency fined YouTube and Twitch $2.45 million and $970,000, respectively, for the same offense. Gambling advertising in Italy has been banned in any form since 2018, but that has not stopped the black gambling market from flourishing in the country.