A Masked Singer gambling website has sparked uproar.
The show’s production company Bandicoot has signed a deal with online brand PlayOJO to launch new games themed around the hit show.
Fans are being offered the chance to bet on bingo, slots and scratchcards in the hope of winning up to £200,000.
Programme bosses agreed the money-making deal despite The Masked Singer being popular with children.
Games are advertised on Instagram, which has around two million users aged under 18.
Masked Singer launched on Boxing Day, airing on ITV (Image: ITV)
Anti-gambling campaigners warned they were likely to cause major problems for punters, and called on show chiefs to reconsider.
Matt Zarb-Cousin, from the Clean Up Gambling organisation, said: “Not only will this appeal to children, it is yet another example of using a popular TV show to sanitise an experience that is all too often life destroying.
“There are no limits to how much you can stake on addictive slots online, nor are adequate affordability checks carried out by online gambling firms.”
He added: “Bandicoot TV should think again about associating The Masked Singer brand with products that have such high rates of gambling harm.”
The Masked Singer’s production company Bandicoot has signed a deal to launch gambling games (Image: ITV)
Marc Etches, from leading charity GambleAware, said: “We are concerned about the normalisation of gambling for children, in particular by the promotion of gambling by popular family entertainment programmes.”
Other ITV shows used by betting sites include Britain’s Got Talent and Saturday Night Takeaway.
PlayOJO said it verifies the ages of players so that only over-18s can play.
It added that it also uses a range of tools to support safer gambling and ensure people play within their means.
An ITV spokesman said: “Any advertising that we have in place will always fall in line within the Ofcom Broadcasting Code, as well as
regulations that have been set out by the Broadcast Committee on Advertising Practice.”
Find further information on online gambling at cleanupgambling.com.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
