Casino Control (Advertising) Regulations 2010

No. S 86

Casino Control Act

(Chapter 33A)

Casino Control (Advertising) Regulations 2010

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 200(2)(j) of the Casino Control Act, the Casino Regulatory Authority of Singapore, with the approval of the Minister for Home Affairs, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Casino Control (Advertising) Regulations 2010 and shall come into operation on 12th February 2010.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —

“casino advertisement” means any writing, object, still or moving visual image or message or audible message, or any combination of them, which —

(a)

contains any express or implied inducement, suggestion or request to visit any casino;

(b)

expressly or impliedly leads to, induces, urges, promotes or encourages the playing of any game in any casino; or

(c)

being designed to publicise or to promote the casino or the playing of any game in the casino, mentions, illustrates or depicts —

(i)	any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino; or
(ii)	any pictorial device commonly associated with any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino;

“Changi Airport” means the area declared as Changi Airport under the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (Changi Airport) Notification 2009 (G.N. No. S 293/2009);

“designated tourist attraction” means a place designated as a tourist attraction and listed on the official website of the Authority at http://www.cra.gov.sg as such;

“distribute” includes delivering or sending to any person, or leaving on any premises or vehicle;

“printed notice” means any handbill, circular, brochure, pamphlet, map or other like document;

“publish”, in relation to a casino advertisement, means —

(a)	publish the advertisement in a newspaper, magazine, journal, periodical, directory or other printed publication or printed notice or on any object;
(b)	disseminate the advertisement by radio, television or other mass medium;
(c)	disseminate the advertisement by the public exhibition or broadcast of a photograph, slide, film, video recording, audio recording or other recording of images or sound;
(d)	publish or disseminate the advertisement electronically, including (but not limited to) publishing the advertisement on the Internet or in any way that renders it accessible from the Internet;
(e)	publicly exhibit the advertisement in, on, over or under any building, place, vehicle, vessel, train, aircraft or in the air; or
(f)	make known the advertisement to the public or a section thereof in any other manner or by any other means;

“Singapore Tourism Board” means the Singapore Tourism Board established under the Singapore Tourism Board Act (Cap. 305B).

No publication or distribution of casino advertisement

3.—(1) Except as provided in these Regulations or in accordance with an approval of the Authority under regulation 7, a person referred to in paragraph (2) shall not —

(a)	publish or cause to be published in Singapore a casino advertisement; or
(b)	distribute or cause to be distributed in Singapore any printed notice or printed publication, which he knows or reasonably ought to know contains a casino advertisement.

(2) Paragraph (1) applies to the following persons:

(a)	a casino operator;
(b)	a licensed junket promoter;
(c)	a licensed special employee;
(d)	an applicant for a casino licence, a junket promoter’s licence or a special employee licence during the period that the application is under consideration and has not been determined; and
(e)	any person acting on behalf of or under any arrangement with a person referred to in sub-paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d).

Permitted advertising

4.—(1) Regulation 3(1) does not apply to —

(a)	the making or exhibition of any directional sign;
(b)	the use of any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino for the purpose of promoting or identifying any goods or services unconnected with the casino which are manufactured, distributed, marketed or provided by the casino operator;
(c)	the publication or dissemination of any interview or media release given by a casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter to any print or broadcast media organisation;
(d)	the public acknowledgment by a person of any donation to or sponsorship of any cause or event, or of any subscription to a product or service, by a casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter;
(e)	the publication or distribution of any printed publication whose principal market is not Singapore;
(f)	the publication or distribution of a casino advertisement in any of the circumstances referred to in paragraph (2); or
(g)	the publication, or the rendering accessible of a casino advertisement on or from an Internet website of the casino operator if, and only if, the casino advertisement does not contain anything that can reasonably be regarded as directed primarily at or as having particular appeal to Singapore citizens and permanent residents of Singapore within the meaning of section 116(9) of the Act.

(2) The circumstances referred to in paragraph (1)(f) are —

(a)

the exhibition of a limited advertisement on a billboard or signboard placed within the premises of Changi Airport or within the premises of a tourist information centre managed or approved by the Singapore Tourism Board;

(b)

the publication of a limited advertisement in a printed notice or printed publication that can reasonably be regarded as directed primarily at or as having particular appeal to foreign visitors to Singapore;

(c)

the distribution of a printed notice or printed publication referred to in sub-paragraph (b) containing a limited advertisement —

(i)	within any designated site;
(ii)	within any hotel registered as such under the Hotels Act (Cap. 127);
(iii)	within the premises of Changi Airport;
(iv)	within the premises of a tourist information centre managed or approved by the Singapore Tourism Board; or
(v)	within the premises of a designated tourist attraction;

(d)

the distribution by a person of a printed notice which contains, or the sending by electronic means of, a limited advertisement to another person whom the first-mentioned person reasonably believes —

(i)	to be neither a Singapore citizen nor a permanent resident of Singapore within the meaning of section 116(9) of the Act; or
(ii)	to be a premium player or to have a valid annual membership of a casino under section 116(1)(b) of the Act; or

(e)

the distribution within the premises of a casino any object which mentions, illustrates or depicts —

(i)	any brand name, trade mark or service mark of the casino; or
(ii)	any pictorial device commonly associated with any brand name, trade mark or service mark of the casino.

(3) In paragraph (2), "limited advertisement" means a casino advertisement that complies with all of the following requirements:

(a)	the advertisement contains factual information only;
(b)	the factual information in the advertisement is accurate and capable of being substantiated, and is not exaggerated, false, misleading or deceptive;
(c)	the advertisement does not contain any information on the games played in a casino, the playing of games in a casino or the winnings of patrons of a casino, including any testimonial from any patron on his winnings from playing any game in a casino; and
(d)	the advertisement does not contain any express or implied inducement, suggestion or encouragement to play any game in a casino.

Interviews and media releases

5. Where an interview or media release to any print or broadcast media organisation is given by or on behalf of any casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter, the casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter shall ensure that the interview or media release —

(a)

contains factual information only;

(b)

is accurate and capable of being substantiated, and is not exaggerated, false, misleading or deceptive;

(c)

does not contain any express or implied inducement, suggestion or request to visit a casino;

(d)

does not expressly or impliedly promote or encourage the playing of any game in a casino; and

(e)

does not mention, illustrate or depict —

(i)	any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino; or
(ii)	any pictorial device commonly associated with any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino,

unless the brand name, trade mark or service mark of the casino is identical to that of the integrated resort of which the casino is a part.

Contributions to causes, etc.

6. Where a casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter donates to or sponsors any cause or event, or subscribes to any product or service, the casino operator, licensed special employee or licensed junket promoter shall ensure that any public acknowledgment of the donation, sponsorship or subscription by the recipient does not —

(a)

contain any express or implied inducement, suggestion or request to visit a casino;

(b)

expressly or impliedly promote or encourage the playing of any game in a casino; or

(c)

mention, illustrate or depict —

(i)	any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino; or
(ii)	any pictorial device commonly associated with any brand name, trade mark or service mark of a casino,

unless the brand name, trade mark or service mark of the casino is identical to that of the integrated resort of which the casino is a part.

Approvals

7.—(1) The Authority may, in its discretion, approve, for such time and upon such conditions as the Authority may think fit the publication or distribution of a casino advertisement by any person referred to in regulation 3(2).

(2) Where any such person fails to comply with any condition imposed by the Authority under paragraph (1), the Authority may cancel the approval in relation to which that condition was imposed.

(3) Any application for approval under paragraph (1) shall be made in such form and manner and contain such particulars as may be determined by the Authority.

Power to order withdrawal or rectification

8. Where it appears to the Authority that a person referred to in regulation 3(2) has published or distributed, or caused to be published or distributed, a casino advertisement in contravention of any provision of these Regulations or a condition imposed under regulation 7, the Authority may, whether or not it cancels any approval in relation to which that condition was imposed but after making due inquiry into the matter, direct the person to rectify, withdraw, remove or discontinue the advertisement or cause the same to be altered, withdrawn, removed or discontinued, and that person shall comply with that direction.

Offence and disciplinary action

9.—(1) Any person who contravenes regulation 3 or 8 shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction —

(a)	in the case of a casino operator, to a fine not exceeding $100,000; or
(b)	in any other case, to a fine not exceeding $10,000.

(2) Any casino operator or licensed junket promoter which or who contravenes regulation 5 or 6 shall be liable to disciplinary action under section 54 of the Act or under the Casino Control (Junkets) Regulations 2009 (G.N. No. S 663/2009), as the case may be.

Made this 12th day of February 2010.

RICHARD MAGNUS

Chairman,
Casino Regulatory Authority
of Singapore.

[CRA 15/5/5 Vol. 1; AG/LEG/SL/33A/2006/12 Vol. 1]

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