Safer Gambling Weekly Round-Up by Dam Mad Media
Welcome to this week’s Safer Gambling Round-Up, featuring Swedish iGaming regulations, Fakta om spel, UK sports sponsorships, a gambling ad ban in Lithuania and a new Entain responsible gambling campaign.
Swedish iGaming Regulations
Sweden’s independent online gambling trade association, Spelbranschens Riksorganisation, released a ‘draft framework’ for its members to follow in relation to customer terms and conditions.
The framework is advisory and was crafted in response to criticism from Sweden’s Consumer Agency, which highlighted that standards were not aligned in the area of terms and conditions. The ‘nine-point framework’ will complement the rules in Sweden’s reformed Gambling Act and offer enhanced clarity by establishing common practices amongst regulated operators.
SPER Chief Executive Jenny Nilzon said: “The Swedish Consumer Agency has pointed out that there is great potential for improvement when it comes to agreements.
“This framework is intended as a help and guidance. Our recommendation is based on it being clear and comprehensible to consumers what applies when you become and are a customer.”
Fakta om spel
Later in the week, it was announced that the ‘Fakta om spel’ website was launched. As previously reported in this newsletter, the Swedish Trade Association for Online Gambling, BOS, has teamed up with Betsson, Kindred Group, LeoVegas and William Hill – four of the biggest bookmakers in Sweden – to promote statistics and facts about the regulated gambling industry. Player protection is one of its aims.
UK Sports Sponsorships
Moving to the UK and in response to demands relating to social responsibility, professional sports clubs are turning away from sponsorship deals with gambling companies, favouring deals with other sectors such as construction/engineering, automotive and financial services instead.
Figures from Caytoo suggest the gambling industry accounts for 8.1% of all sponsorships in football, rugby and cricket, down from 15.3% in 2019. This reduction ‘has been driven entirely by football’.
Gambling is still the most prominent sector regarding football sponsorship, but its presence is waning there in particular, down from 32.7% to 15.2%.
Alex Burmaster, Head of Research and Analysis at Caytoo, explained: “This change has been driven by the greater demand from society for professional sports to be more socially responsible when it comes to their fans and communities.
“In addition to gambling’s drop, alcohol has seen the second-biggest reduction in prevalence while Environmental Services and Healthcare are among those with the biggest increases.”
He highlighted the recent furore regarding BK8’s sponsorship deal with Norwich City, which was terminated abruptly in favour of a deal with Lotus cars due to the Asian bookmaker’s ‘sexually provocative’ marketing campaigns on social media and the public outcry as a result.
Lithuania Gambling Ad Ban
On Thursday, Lithuania’s ban on gambling promotions came into force following a new law that was passed two months ago.
The ban includes the “promotion of gambling in any form and by any means, dissemination of information or persuasion” and although advertising itself is not prohibited, it is not allowed in the context of using test games, discounts, gifts, special events, bonuses or anything that incentivises people to gamble.
Gambling companies are also denied the opportunity to send information about themselves directly to customers, even things as trivial as opening hours or their physical address.
Furthermore, anything related to gaming cannot be published on sites targeting under-18s.
According to the Lithuanian government, the law is designed to reduce instances of problem gambling as well as lowering the amount of money that customers spend.
New Entain Campaign
Finally, ahead of last weekend’s Styrian Grand Prix, Entain teamed up with McLaren Racing to launch Party Responsibly, highlighting the benefits of staying in control, whether it be behind the wheel or of your gambling.
The PartyCasino and PartyPoker brands featured prominently, with the centrepiece of the campaign being a mini-film called ‘Time to Pit’, featuring McLaren F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo.
A new internet hub partyresponsibly.net was also launched, highlighting McLaren’s commitment to safety over the years, profiling the features they have introduced to their cars. This is combined with tips and advice on how to stay in control of your betting. McLaren’s MCL35M race cars will also carry the Party Responsibly messaging for the next two races.
Commenting on the initiative, Grainne Hurst, Director of Corporate Affairs at Entain said: “We believe there are lots to learn from the importance McLaren and Daniel attach to managing risk and staying in control. That’s why we think Party Responsibly is a great way to use the partnership to promote safer betting and gaming, to ensure our players respect their limits and enjoy a great entertainment experience with us.”
Self Exclusion in Germany
Germany’s new self-exclusion system will go live on 2 August, a month after the licensed online market relaunched, which took place yesterday.
The centralised OASIS system forms part of the terms of the State Treaty on Gambling (GlüNeuRStV), with it undergoing final tests and optimisation prior to being released. As part of their licensing, all operators in the German market must sign up to OASIS payment blocking.
Under GlüNeuRStV, a self-exclusion ban can only be lifted by player request after a minimum term has elapsed. That term for an unlimited ban currently sits at one year, with limited bans corresponding to the time period originally requested.
ANJ
Finally, the L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) in France has appointed Christel Fiorina as its new director of markets, compliance and player protection.
She will be charged with overseeing the economic regulation of the French gambling market, with a focus on the prevention of excessive gambling. She’ll also look at the promotional and commercial strategies used by operators.
