The topic of the black market is never far from an executive’s lips – from the elite meeting of SBC Leaders at the beautiful Palacio Estoril Hotel to the Super Stage at the mighty MEO Arena, and on to multiple panels at our very own Player Protection Symposium. The issue was discussed with reference to…
In recent days following media coverage about how DraftKings might use artificial intelligence to target losing bettors, state regulators are asking more of their sports betting licensees.
Regulators in Massachusetts and New York took steps in recent days in a bid to gain insight and oversight in how operators use AI and machine learning in their marketing practices.
Massachusetts regulator requests AI details from sportsbooks
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) announced Wednesday that, at the request of commissioners, it asked sportsbooks to explain themselves.
Executive Director Dean Serpa sent letters on Oct. 9 to all of the state’s licensed sportsbooks, asking them to detail how they use AI in activities including marketing and promotions, customer outreach and engagement, and evaluation of gambling behavior indicators.
The commission wants written responses by Nov. 3 to numerous questions, including:
Does the operator use AI such as algorithms or similar technologies ..
The African Responsible Gaming Network (ARGN) is addressing fragmentation in the region by instituting best responsible gaming practices across the continent.
Gabriel Akpabio, ARGN Member and Chief Executive Officer of Gamble Aware Nigeria, told iGaming Expert that Africa’s newest responsible gambling body is important, as the region continues to strive to solve its fragmentation challenges in the bid to address gambling-related harm.
The ARGN features a coalition of seasoned iGaming experts from 11 nations, with a goal to create a safer ecosystem, devoid of any form of harm which might arise from problem gambling.
Countries represented in the network include South Africa, Nigeria, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Malawi, Botswana, Namibia, Cameroon, Uganda and Eswatini.
Akpabio commented: “One problem with Africa is fragmentation. The continent hardly unites, and this diminishes its strength. This applies to responsible gaming, and the role of ARGN is to remove siloes by building bridge..
Speaking at the SBC Summit in Lisbon, Jesper Eliasson, Director at PAF, revealed a potentially new approach to tackling illegal gambling.
The subject of the lurking black market was rife throughout the event, with the threat being elevated by increasingly tight taxation regimes and hostile frameworks.
Whilst these factors are having a major impact on the regulated market competing with the illegal sector, social media platforms are pivotal in driving players there and escalating exposure of black market operators.
Speaking during the Scandinavia panel, Eliasson stated that they are in an experimental partnership with Meta, working together to thwart the surge of the unlicensed sector.
He revealed they will be sharing certain parameters as a result of the deal, including license documents and URLs, helping Meta create a clearer picture of who is regulated and who isn’t, both in terms of affiliates and operators.
There is a real concerted effort to eradicate the creative around ..
The UK gambling sector has faced growing regulatory scrutiny in recent years, with the Gambling Commission tightening its oversight of licensing duties and regulatory compliance. Financial penalties remain a prominent lever to hold operators accountable for their actions.
SBC News examines some of the biggest gambling penalties issued in the UK, highlighting the operators involved and what led to the imposed penalties that are continuing to shape the UK’s regulatory landscape.
William Hill– £19.2m
In 2023, the William Hill Group got hit with regulatory penalties on three different fronts, related to anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures.
WHG (International) Limited, operator of William Hill Online, had to settle for £12.5m with the Commission, making up the largest share of the total amount. Online casino Mr Green came in second with a £3.7m penalty, while William Hill Organisation Ltd was reprimanded with £3m.
In certain instances, customers were able to spend..
LISBON, Portugal — DraftKings CEO Jason Robins offered a forceful defense of his company’s responsible gaming approach on Tuesday, amid a run of challenging press.
Speaking at SBC Summit as part of a keynote panel with Michael Jordan and Sportradar CEO Carsten Koerl, Robins responded to a question about responsible gaming from moderator Kirsty Gallagher with a passionate answer, days after recent stories about DraftKings’ use of AI by The New York Times and its approach to problem gamblers by ProPublica.
“I think a lot of people — and it’s frustrating for us — look at us and say, you’re motivated by the wrong things. You don’t want people to bet within their means, you want to take advantage of people. That could not be farther from the truth. Every single person in the company will tell you that it’s not at all what we want. That’s the worst possible thing for our company, for our industry,” Robins said.
DraftKings responsible gaming philosophy, in CEO’s words
Robins discussed his..
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) announced this Friday, the 25th, the prohibition of fixed-odds betting in Brazil, effective immediately, while fulfilling an official agenda in São Paulo . The regulated websites and applications will be taken offline on October 6th, two days after the first round of elections, through a joint effort between the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) and…
BetStop, Australia’s national self-exclusion register finds itself at the centre of a report discussing the controversies in the country’s gambling sector.
Uncertainty is a word that very much epitomises the state of Australia’s gambling industry right now.
Public sentiment is overwhelmingly hostile toward the sheer volume of gambling promotion, with polling showing around 76%-77% of Australians supporting a total ban on gambling advertising.
Health experts, gambling reform advocates and independent lawmakers have increasingly vocalised their views that gambling is a major public health issue. Calls for change are largely based on the 2023 Murphy report, a parliamentary report containing 31 recommendations for gambling reform.
On the back of this, the government under the leadership of Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has resisted a blanket ban and opted for partial restrictions like the three-per-hour gambling ad cap instead.
This has frustrated many Down Under, including A..
Despite its monopoly status as the state-owned operator, Veikkaus is all for opening the Finnish iGaming market to commercially licensed operators, so long as it boosts player protection and combats the black market, which has become increasingly prevalent.
Finland’s iGaming market is set to open up and become a licence-based system from 1 July next year. The National Police Board of Finland, Poliisi, reported back in June that its gambling administration had received 50 licence applications, as appetite for market share reaches fever pitch.
Olli Sarekoski, Chief Executive Officer of Veikkaus, spoke to Lottery Daily about the transformation as he warned that currently in excess of 1,500 gaming companies target Finland, with over half of 2024’s total gaming volume taking place outside the regulated market.
The CEO noted: “The key point is the channelisation rate. A lot of gaming is outside the official channels. What is the point of the monopoly if this is the case?”
While Veikkau..
The political debate around gambling has long been polarised and now it has plunged into obscenity. But where are those who should be representing the grown-ups? Steve Hoare investigates Gamban Director Matt Zarb-Cousin lost it the other day – although he doesn’t see it that way. He believes if somebody calls him a a c***,…