Hertford and Stortford MP Julie Marson has met with the Digital Economy Minister to urge him to tackle social media tipsters who make their money from punters losing.
The Twitter tipsters have risen in popularity over the last few years, but they are often affiliated to betting companies and their advice can be questionable.
Julie met with Chris Philp in Westminster on 2 March and asked him to look at blocking the tipsters’ ability to screenshot while on betting apps and adding warnings to their activities which would make it clear the potential losses which customers could sustain.
The move would severely limit their business because they would not be able to demonstrate previous wins to try and entice people to bet or tell people how to bet.
Some tipsters can rake up to 30% of the money a gambler loses for taking their advice meaning they bizarrely stand to gain when a bet fails.
Many tipsters also do not make it clear they are affiliated to a betting firm on their profile either.
“I am really concerned these so-called tipsters are even allowed to even exist and I would like to see them out of business,” said Julie.
“Their business model is predicated on them making sure people lose money while giving the very thin veneer of giving good advice or having some special knowledge.
“Some of them are very plausible and many do not even mention their links to online gambling sites.
“This unregulated online activity needs looking at.
“It cannot be right that these tipsters make money from their followers losing. It’s unacceptable behaviour.
“I told the Minister that ideally, I would like to see measures to stop or regulate the tipsters included in the forthcoming Online Safety Bill, through new legislation arising from the Gambling Review or the Government’s Online Advertising Programme.
“However, I did say I think the Government needs to take action as soon as possible and put these people out of business.”