The advertising regulator challenged Facebook ads from HRY Games, which claimed its algorithm could predict football matches almost 100% accurately.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned ads from HRY Games for being “irresponsible and misleading”.
The ads in question were distributed on Facebook, and were focused on AI football predictions. The app being advertised, AI Scorecast, provides AI data analytics for football games.
The ad copy stated: “AI analyses every football match for you. Get smarter predictions instantly”. Text below the imagery read: “AI Football Predictions” and included a call-to-action button to install the app.
The ad continued: “Great news for football fans. A brand new AI app has just launched. It predicts outcomes with a 97% accuracy rate in advance […] It analyses thousands of football data points in seconds so you can know the result instantly. I tried it myself, six matches all correct.”
The ASA explained that, in its view, consumers would likely see these claims as an indication the app could predict football matches with a 97% accuracy. This could lead audiences to believe they would be very likely to profit if they used the app’s recommendations to inform their gambling decisions.
Crucially, the ad does not make any references to the possibility of losses. As a result, the ASA ruled the ad implied the service was “very likely to allow consumers who used it to make ‘informed’ gambling decisions to turn a profit, without information on the risks involved in betting”.
The ASA subsequently concluded the ad was “misleading and irresponsible”.
HRY Games and AI Scorecast did not respond to any enquiries the advertising watchdog sent. This raised concerns for the ASA, which said the lack of response is an “apparent disregard for the [Cap] Code”.
Under the code, all advertisers have a responsibility to provide a response to ASA enquiries in a reasonable time.
Going forward, HRY Games and AI Scorecast has been told to ensure future advertising is prepared with a “sense of responsibility to consumers and society,” and to “not misleadingly imply that consumers were very likely or certain to achieve a profit”.
