SBC News

GamCare has unveiled a new addition to its services with a specific focus on women experiencing gambling-related harm, the Way Forward support group.

A virtual event, the support group will be held over Zoom between 6.30pm and 8pm and conducted by trained facilitators specialising in supporting women impacted by gambling harm.

In order, the seven sessions will focus on allowing participants to get to know each other, understanding gambling addiction, self-care, dealing with guilt, shame and enabling behaviours, dealing with anger and resentment, having difficult conversations, expectations and acceptance, and concluding with a reflection session.

The launch of the support group closely follows the addition of live chatrooms to GamCare’s service, also with a specific focus on assisting women who have encountered gambling related harm.

The themed chatrooms will take place 6pm-7pm Monday-Friday on a weekly basis from 31 July onwards, covering five different areas of focus on each day ..

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has allocated £32,844,197.31 to GambleAware for the creation of a ‘system stabilisation’ in regards to a transition period from voluntary funding to a statutory levy.

This is the latest allocation of funds gained by the UKGC through regulatory settlements, and is intended to “stabilise the system of gambling harm prevention, support and treatment” during the changeover. A previous high of $8.8m was also issued to GambleAware in April 2020.

A statutory levy to fund research, education and treatment (RET) was one of the biggest and most highly debated changes of the UK gambling white paper review of the 2005 Gambling Act.

Zoë Osmond, Chief Executive of GambleAware, previously called for the government to “move with urgency” regarding a range of consultations associated with the white paper, the first of which were addressed earlier in the week.

She said: “We welcome government plans to introduce a statutory levy as outlined in its Gambling white pape..

After over two years of waiting, the betting industry and research, education and treatment sector (RET) finally learned the proposals of the Gambling Act review when the White Paper was published in April.

The generational legislative overhaul of the UK’s regulatory framework for betting laid out a series of recommendations for change. This has included a mandatory levy to support RET activities and finance risk checks, although little mention of advertising reforms that some campaigners were hoping for.

Ahead of the review’s publication, SBC Media spoke to Gordon Moody at the treatment organisation’s Manchester clinic, gaining an understanding of a leading RET organisation’s views on forthcoming regulatory changes.

“I think the industry has done a lot,” said Gordon Moody CEO Matthew Hickey, reflecting on responsible practice adopted by UK operators in recent years.

“I think it really has come a long way. My evidence in that is in the conversations I and Gordon Moody have with the..

GambleAware has released the full list of betting operators and B2B gaming suppliers which donated to support research, education and treatment (RET) programmes in the opening quarter of the 2023/24 fiscal year.

The charity received £430.9m in total, consisting of £317.1m in RET donations and £113.7m in non-RET donations, the latter being funds from unclaimed winnings or dormant betting accounts.

None of the ‘Big Four’ operators – Entain, Flutter Entertainment, bet365 and William Hill – were present in this quarter’s update, which covers April-June 2023.

However, given the operators’ large donations in previous quarters and the fact the donations commitment is annual, it can be expected that these companies will appear in lists later in the year.

Notable operator donors in Q1 2023/24 included high-street giant and online bookmaker Betfred (£50,000), web-only sportsbook Betway (£25,000), Star Racing (£28,916), Virgin Bet (£22,836) and the Postcode Lottery (£18,708).

The UK current..

Rightlander has secured an extension to its partnership with bet365, as the betting group targets enhanced responsible gambling compliance across its international operations.

The Stoke-on-Trent-based firm will continue to leverage Rightlander’s platform and features to maintain compliance with various regulatory frameworks as regimes across the world continue to evolve.

Keeping track with regulatory changes and promoting responsible gambling has become a key area of focus for bet365. The company is active in multiple markets undergoing regulatory change such as the UK and Netherlands, with the Gambling Act review White Paper published in the former and a ban on advertising coming into force in the latter.

“We are excited to renew our contract with Rightlander,” said a bet365 spokesperson. “Their comprehensive compliance solution has become an integral part of our affiliate program.

“The extended partnership reinforces our commitment to responsible gambling and our dedication to pr..

VBET has been named a partner of the charity match Game4Ukraine, set to take place on 5 August at Stamford Bridge.

The gambling company’s branding is set to appear on the players’ shorts and will also organise activities to promote the match in Ukraine, as well as other European countries where the global group of VBET operates. (including the UK).

Artem Ivanytsky, CMO, VBET Ukraine, stated: “We understand the value of responsibility towards the country, society, and players, that’s why VBET could not stay indifferent to this event.

“We proudly support Andriy Shevchenko and Oleksandr Zinchenko in their endeavours. The global brand VBET will not only be a partner of this symbolic football match. VBET Ukraine will actively participate in additional activations aimed at increasing the donation amount.”

Game4Ukraine has outlined that its main focus is to drive donations for the restoration of Mykhailo-Kotsiubynsky Lyceum in the Chernihiv region – the educational institution which was..

Kindred Group chipped away at the proportion of its revenues derived from harmful gambling during Q2 2023, cutting the figure down from 3.3% to 3.1%.

The Stockholm-listed operator, active in various markets via its Unibet sportsbook and 32Red igaming brands, set an objective of achieving 0% revenue from harmful gambling in H1 2021.

As it stands, the 3.1% figure reported this week marks the lowest proportion of income from harmful gambling achieved by the group. This was accompanied by a record- high improvement effect after interventions, which stood at 86.4%.

Nils Andén, Kindred Group Interim CEO, said: “Our ‘Journey towards Zero’ ambition is an important parameter for Kindred and our ability to contribute towards a fact-based dialogue on how to establish a more sustainable gambling industry.

“It also acts as a fundamental metric in Kindred’s internal efforts to improve our responsible gambling efforts. We have always been clear on that we will not achieve this ambition overnight..

Gambling and particularly its advertising and marketing practices have been an area of focus for Australian authorities at the state and federal level. Amidst this, leading betting firm Tabcorp has outlined its responsible advertising principles.

A statement published on the ASX group’s website, signed by Managing Director and CEO Adam Rytenskild, asserted that Tabcorp is supportive of ‘tougher restrictions’ on betting advertising to protect young and vulnerable people.

This has included the ban on advertising during prime-time viewing on free-to-air TV between 6:30am and 8:30pm, as well as backing the setting up of a framework for regulating online gambling advertising. Former Tabcorp CEO David Attenborough has been vocally supportive of such a move in the past.

The presence and visibility of betting, particularly via advertising, has fallen under the Australian public and political spotlight in recent years, attracting attention from state governments, the federal government and i..

Flutter Entertainment’s Alpha Hub has put out the feelers for betting and gaming start-ups to work with the global gambling group’s Positive Impact Plan.

Interested early stage companies have been asked to apply for the FTSE100 firm’s Flutter Tech4Good Award and the Flutter & RGC: Play Well Challenge. The group is targeting early-stage companies with responsible gambling specialities.

The Tech4Good Award and Play Well Challenge serve to support Flutter’s RG and social responsibility initiatives, particularly the Positive Impact Plan’s objectives.

The latter is coordinated in partnership with the North America-focused Responsible Gaming Council (RGC) as a means to create a safer gambling environment, in cooperation with start-ups, via innovative solutions. .

Flutter Entertainment Chief Innovation Officer, Conor Lynch, said: “The Flutter Tech4Good Award and Play Well Challenge align our expertise in technology with the ambitious targets set out within our Positive Impact Plan.

“As ..

GamCare has announced the launch of its new ‘Women’s Chatroom‘ to provide a safe and confidential online environment for women affected by problem gambling.

The new facility was officially launched on Tuesday 18 July, providing lived-experience support to women seeking help/care regarding their own or others’ problem gambling concerns.

The initiative forms part of GamCare’s treatment strategy as the chatroom aims to connect, support, and enable the sharing of stories between women in similar positions.

On an annual basis, the charity’s National Gambling Helpline assists over 40,000 people, 30% of whom are women.

The chatroom intends to tackle feelings of guilt and shame associated with gambling issues while reinforcing the fact that users are not alone.

It will host semi-structured sessions every Tuesday from 7-8pm for six weeks, each week focusing on a different theme.

Week one is titled Introduction: Gambling & The Woman. It will be followed by Gambling & The Mind in week two..