CasinoBeats

The Betting & Gaming Council (BGC) has announced that Safer Gambling Week 2024 achieved more than 60 million impressions across social media platforms.

Organised by the BGC, BACTA and the Bingo Association, this is the eighth year the Safer Gambling Week campaign has taken place, raising awareness about responsible gambling tools and resources available to players in land-based venues and online, kick-starting safer gambling conversations between staff, customers and their friends and family.

This year’s campaign, which took place between 18 and 24 November, had a 21% increase in impressions compared to the previous year, with engagement to raise awareness of safer gambling taking place across X, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Several cross-party UK MPs, peers and shadow ministers also backed Safer Gambling Week, including Gambling Minister Baroness Fiona Twycross and Shadow DCMS Secretary Stuart Andrew MP.

The campaign was also supported by the UK Gambling Commission and its CE..

In her first public appearance since becoming the UK’s Gambling Minister, Baroness Twycross demanded action from operators to curb advertising.

“The issue of what is appropriate needs to be looked at in aggregate,” said the Minister, “not operator by operator. I do not stand here today to tell you what that volume must be, but I do expect industry to take the initiative on this by working across industry, with sporting bodies, with academics and harm prevention experts.”

She said that her department will be closely monitoring the sports codes of conduct – brought in voluntarily by sporting bodies earlier this year – “to ensure they have a meaningful impact”.

“I am also eager to see improvements made to safer gambling messaging,” she continued. “Industry ownership of safer gambling messaging is not sustainable in the long term. That is why we are working with the Department of Health and Social Care and the Gambling Commission to develop a new approach to messaging.

“I believe thi..

Vixio has announced changes to its board as Christian Erlandson has been appointed as its new Chair, effective immediately.

Replacing Gehan Talwatte, who has served as Chair for the past two years, Erlandson brings knowledge in executive leadership, strategy and innovation to the position, as well as over 30 years of senior leadership experience in the data and analytics sector.

The regulatory intelligence solutions provider noted that he has “led successful digital transformations, spearheaded product development initiatives, built high-performing teams, and leveraged data-driven insights to deliver exceptional results for clients”.

As Chair, Erlandson will utilise his industry experience and leadership to support Vixio’s growth, assisting with new product launches and expansion into the wider financial services industry and new territories.

“I am honoured to join Vixio as Chair and excited to contribute to the company’s continued success and growth,” commented Erlandson on his ne..

As part of a sea of regulatory changes within UK gambling, DCMS cemented plans for the introduction of online slot stake limits of £5 for those aged over 25 and £2 for young adults aged 18-24, as recommended by the White Paper.

Implementation of £5 and £2 stake limits on online slots will come in at the end of November, signifying a landmark change for UK gambling safeguards. Approved in February, the rollout of the changes has been fragmated.

Operators were granted an initial six weeks to comply with the new rules, followed by an additional six weeks to implement technical solutions ensuring full compliance with the reduced £2 stake limit for 18-24 year olds.

DCMS cited that the latest changes are ‘a critical protection’ when it comes to safeguarding players, as it looks to enhance safeguards for more vulnerable younger players.

DCMS stated: “Technological developments in recent years have dramatically changed the way people gamble. Gambling has shifted from betting shops and casi..

GambleAware has reported an increase in people accessing the National Gambling Support Network (NGSN), with a more than 10% rise also being recorded in the number of people receiving treatment for gambling harm compared to the previous year.

In response to the annual report, the gambling support charity’s Chief Commissioning and Strategy Officer, Anna Hargrave, noted that part of the reason why there is an increase in people receiving support and treatment is that the service has “been able to identify and support people at a much earlier stage”.

The Annual Statistics for the National Gambling Support Network report covered the period of 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024 and showed the number of people who received treatment and support from the NGSN.

The report also provided insight into the characteristics of people who received treatment and support, the details of treatment outcomes, as well as the trends in treatment and support over the past nine years.

Commissioned by Gamble..

Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) is funding a pilot that will supply Gamban services to people in the Netherlands free of charge for a year.

Through the partnership, the public in the Netherlands can gain access to a free one-year subscription with Gamban by contacting Loket Kansspel, the country’s national support service, via the website, WhatsApp, email or over the phone. The app is also available in Dutch.

Gamban is also supporting the KSA in its work in detecting unregulated websites as part of its efforts to combat illegal gambling.

“At Loket Kansspel, we believe that taking control of your online environment is crucial for breaking free from gambling addiction,” commented Nathalie Smit, Director at Loket Kansspel.

“By partnering with Gamban, we’re empowering individuals to stay in control and manage their gambling behaviour. We are excited to provide people with free access to gambling blocking software.”

Matt Zarb-Cousin, Co-Founder of Gamban, stated: “Having a self-exclusion sche..

As Safer Gambling Week 2024 concludes, betting and gaming legal expert Elizabeth Varley explores the most effective methods to ensure staff at all levels are fully equipped to spot warning signs.

Elizabeth Varley

Every year in the betting and gaming industry, we come together to give the dedicated attention and space to education, awareness and signposting for Safer Gambling Week. This year’s week runs from 18-24 November, and aims to get everyone talking about gambling responsibly, as well as directing those who need further advice and support to the right point of contact.

The week-long educational event, which is led by the licensed gambling industry with the support of a wide range of partners, will see every sector of the gambling industry in the UK taking part (bookmakers, bingo clubs, casinos and online gaming operators).

While responsible gambling is something we consider daily and are always aware of, it’s a benefit to both the public and the industry to listen, learn and..

The battle between operators and fraudsters is consistently evolving – with the potential threat of bonus abuse becoming increasingly prevalent.

A recent SBC Webinar, titled ‘Accelerating profitable play: Preventing bonus abuse while ensuring responsible gambling’, saw industry experts share a myriad of essential ingredients to bolster the fight against fraud.

Writing for GamblingTV, Christian Lee picked out three that were cited as essential takeaways from the session.

Setting a benchmark

“One great call is to make sure that as an organisation, and as a fraud prevention unit, you’ve decided what your level of risk tolerance is for your business and you have that baseline because everything will build off that,” said Brittany Allen, Senior Trust & Safety Architect at Sift.

“The goals you are looking to reach, the metrics that you need to hit to report within your organisation, they all fall back on just how much potential loss can be let through and how much of an appetite we h..