Europe

BGC launches ‘vital’ International Best Practice Guide for global policymakers

CasinoBeats0365 views

The Betting and Gaming Council has released an International Best Practice Guide laying out key policy objectives for global operators and regulators.

Compiled by professional consulting firm Alvarez and Marsal, BGC’s best practices guide compares regulatory approaches across each market around the world, offering a single body of evidence to critically analyse each and every strategy.

Grainne Hurst, BGC CEO,explained: “For the first time, the BGC has brought together the lessons, both positive and negative, which have been learned by operators and regulators around the world when it comes to the online gaming sector.”

“This sector will no doubt continue to grow internationally, offering huge potential benefits to existing markets and those which are currently developing.

“Through effective regulation of this new growth sector, governments can achieve their core priorities of raising tax, boosting growth and jobs, while delivering high standards for player protection.”

Key objec..

Read more

UKGC adds two members to Advisory Board for Safer Gambling

CasinoBeats0247 views

The UK Gambling Commission has added to its Advisory Board for Safer Gambling (ABSG) with the appointments of Dr Virve Marionneau and Dr Spencer Murch.

Marionneau is a sociologist and Director of the Centre for Research on Addiction, Control and Governance at the University of Helsinki, Finland. Meanwhile, Murch is a cognitive psychologist and AGRI Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Calgary, Canada.

Anna van der Gaag, Chair of ABSG, commented: “We are very fortunate to have Virve and Spencer as our newest members. They are highly respected academics, both with a strong record of achievement in the field of gambling studies, and together they will expand the national and international research expertise we offer to the commission.

“Gambling is a global business and the regulatory challenges faced in different jurisdictions have much in common. I am delighted to be welcoming them and have no doubt they will bring valuable new insights to an ever-expanding range of topics which ..

Read more

GamCare introduces night chatrooms to provide accessible support

CasinoBeats0268 views

GamCare is offering additional confidential, supportive and non-judgmental spaces for people affected by gambling-related harms with the introduction of night chatrooms.

Available every Tuesday between 1am and 2am, the gambling support charity has stated that the night chatrooms will provide more accessible support at night in a moderated, safe and friendly environment to individuals affected by gambling-related harm.

GamCare noted that the night chatrooms will offer individuals, affected by their own gambling or supporting someone else, an opportunity to “connect with others who truly understand what you’re going through” to receive and share support, advice and information.

The night chatrooms will be moderated by an experienced GamCare advisor to ensure a respectful and empathetic environment, guiding conversations and providing resources.

GamCare added that the night chatrooms will provide meaningful conversations about personal experiences, coping strategies and available reso..

Read more

Norsk Tipping fined after mistakenly paying a player NOK 25m

CasinoBeats0272 views

Norsk Tipping has been fined NOK 4.5m (approximately €383,000) by the Norwegian gambling and foundation authority Lotteritilsynet for a payout error which resulted in a player being paid NOK 25m (approximately €2.13m).

Lotteritilsynet stated that back in March, Norsk Tipping paid a player NOK 25m by mistake from its online casino game KongKasino, despite the game only having a maximum prize of NOK 100,000 and a jackpot prize of NOK 5m.

The operator told the authority that it happened due to an unexpected error that was difficult to predict. However, the error had not been discovered until the player who received the money notified Norsk Tipping of the mistake.

The player paid back the prize to Norsk Tipping in line with its customer agreement.

In July, Lotteritilsynet sent a notice of infringement fees to Norsk Tipping, but the comments it has received from the operator haven’t changed its opinion on the matter.

Within its decision, the authority stated that it “understands that N..

Read more

Evolution Georgia workers’ union issues warning to company’s investors

CasinoBeats0268 views

LABOR, a union representing Evolution Georgia workers, has petitioned the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority, Finansinspektionen, to review the gaming supplier’s public filings.

In a separate letter, the union has warned Evolution’s shareholders that the company’s “adversarial treatment of employees who seek to exercise freedom of association and collective bargaining rights undermines the core feature of its business model”.

The actions of LABOR follow an ongoing situation in Georgia, where over half of the 8,000 Evolution Gaming workers in Tbilisi have been on strike since 12 July, protesting about “low wages, unsanitary working conditions and other unfair labour practices”.

In total, 44 concerns have been raised by workers to the company, including safety and health issues such as “ventilation and temperature control issues and unsanitary work environments”.

Evolution Gaming employee Makhare Patashuri, a worker on strike, stated: “We asked for basic things like having a doc..

Read more

Spelinspektionen bolsters work against illegal gambling in Sweden

CasinoBeats0329 views

Spelinspektionen, the Swedish gambling authority, is seeking to do more effective work against illegal gambling by producing a “situation description”.

Helping the authority with its work in protecting consumers, public health and tax revenue with its licensing system, the situation description will assist in achieving a “more comprehensive picture of illegal gambling online in Sweden”.

Camilla Rosenberg, Director General of Spelinspektionen, commented: “The situation description will help us in the work to counteract illegal online gambling. Other authorities and players in the gambling market will also be able to benefit from the result.”

Countering illegal gambling outside of the Swedish licensing system, the situation description will aid Spelinspektionen by identifying key actors and methods used that allow for the circumnavigation of gambling legislation and other relevant legislation.

The service will also describe the current situation for illegal online gambling in Swede..

Read more

SBC Summit, Player Protection Zone: Speakers concerned as channelization rates slump to 50%

Steve Hoare0359 views

The rise and rise of the black market continued to dominate conversations on day two of the SBC Summit in Lisbon as operators, suppliers and lobbyists despaired about over-burdening regulation. Svenska Spel Chief Executive Officer Fredrik Wastenson sat on a panel with executives from Finland and Germany, which interrogated the affordability question. “The main problem…

Read more

ASA bans multiple social casino ads for misleading players about real-world money prizes

CasinoBeats0271 views

The Advertising Standards Authority has banned multiple advertisements from social casino apps for misleading players and implying they could win real-world money or tangible prizes.

Each of the adverts appeared as paid-for TikTok ads for the following five companies:

Dataverse Co. Limited t/a Gamehaus

Huuuge Global Limited t/a Billionaire Casino

Mobee Co Ltd t/a Ignite Classic Slots

SpinX Games Ltd

Zeroo Gravity Games LLC t/a Cash Tornado.

The ASA noted that each company’s advert implied that their games were gambling products where real-world money or tangible prizes could be won and withdrawn and therefore were misleading.

Slot gameplay imagery within the adverts was spotlighted by the ASA, such as a casino slot machine and graphics being visible within Huuuge Global’s Billionaire Casino adverts, a roulette-style wheel and slot machine in SpinX Games’ adverts, as well as gameplay footage similar to that of casino-based slot games in Dataverse Co Gamehaus’ adverts.

Verbiage..

Read more

UKGC calls for continued industry cooperation to strengthen Gambling Survey

CasinoBeats0286 views

The UK Gambling Commission has called for the gambling industry’s continued cooperation to strengthen the Gambling Survey for Great Britain.

Ben Haden, the UKGC’s Director of Research and Statistics, sent out the request in a blog post following the publication of the first quarter of participation figures for year two of the GSGB last week.

The latest GSGB figures, covering a nationally representative sample of 5,191 adults aged 18 and over who were interviewed between January 2024 and April 2024, stated that overall gambling participation was 48% in the past four weeks.

Delving deeper into this overall participation figure, the online gambling rate was 38%, falling to 16% when removing lottery draws, while the in-person gambling rate was 29%, dropping to 18% when excluding lottery draws.

GSGB feedback

While the development of the GSGB is still in its early stages, the UKGC’s Research and Statistics Director thanked gambling sector stakeholders for voicing their opinions on the s..

Read more