UKGC forms three groups to address safer gambling standards
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has confirmed that it will create three new focus groups to help facilitate the implementation of safer gambling standards.
Led by senior leaders in the gambling industry, the three collaboration groups will focus on game and product design, advertising technology and high value customer incentives to gamble.
The initiative, which is said to be the first-of-its-kind, will follow on from a briefing in October 2019 in which UKGC CEO Neil McArthur outlined three challenges and opportunities that the industry must grasp to raise standards and rapidly reduce harm across the sector.
SG Gaming and Playtech have both committed to leading work on producing an effective Industry Code for Product Design. The group will primarily focus on how the gambling industry can continue to produce safer products in the future, while also looking at the techniques used to develop games and the associated risks.
Meanwhile, Sky Betting and Gaming has agreed to oversee the advertising technology working group, which will explore and quickly accelerate opportunities to reduce the amount of advertising seen by children, young people and vulnerable adults.
The group focusing on the use of VIP incentives will be led by GVC Holdings, and will involve close cooperation with the Betting and Gaming Council. This group will ‘help ensure bonuses, hospitality and gifts in particular around VIP programmes, are offered in a manner which is consistent with the licensing objectives to make gambling fairer, safer and crimefree’.
Gambling Commission chief executive Neil McArthur said: “We want to see consumer and public confidence in gambling improve and that will only happen if we see significant reductions in the numbers of people who are experiencing gambling related harm. The industry must move more quickly to address these issues which is why we have set out tough challenges that they need to tackle together, bringing together expertise and experience from across the industry.
“Consumer behaviour and technology are changing so quickly that simply seeking incremental improvement will not keep pace with the emerging risks and opportunities. Only a bold and innovative approach will allow us to achieve the reduction in the numbers of people experiencing or at risk from gambling related harm that we need to see.
“We want to support the industry develop, implement and evaluate the three challenges, which we judge most likely to deliver real change for consumers in key areas of risk. We cannot proceed at the speed of the slowest or the least willing which is why we want to see progress made by April 2020.
“I have been encouraged by the response from the industry so far and look forward to seeing the outcome from these working groups. We’ll work with them to ensure that the progress made through these initiatives are properly evaluated to make sure that they are having a lasting impact that keeps consumers safer.”
Source: SBC News
