New responsibilities in responsible gambling

The days when responsible gaming was only something to pay lip service to are now a distant memory. The regulated markets of Europe have pivoted over the last few years and RG obligations are now front and centre for those wishing to operate.

Take a look at the newly-regulated Swedish market, where heavy fines and even the revocation of licences are on the table for those who fail to meet the absolute highest standards.

It is a similar story in the UK, where operators paid a record £19.6m in penalties during the 2018/2019 financial year for RG and AML failings, up from £18.4m in 2017/18 and just £1.7m in 2016/17.

With Ladbrokes Coral hit with a £5.9m fine at the end of July, you wouldn’t bet against 2019/20 topping these figures once again.

Setting a higher bar

The increase in fines across these markets has been caused by tougher enforcement at a time when RG practices have failed to keep pace.

With operators now expected to provide a duty of care to customers, many are still handling their RG obligations in an outdated fashion.

Traditionally, this takes the form of one-size-fits-all triggers across an entire user base. Of course, classic triggers, such as a sudden increase in stakes following a sustained period of losses, remain valid when monitoring players for RG risk.

But in the current climate, this simply does not go far enough. Instead, operators must implement a metric-based system based on the players in front of them. By gathering enough data on players, operators will be able to better identify patterns of risk.

For instance, perhaps a player could be identified as a risk via a combination of deposit history, screen time and the way they vary their wagers.

Having a wide-range of metrics to trigger manual reviews by trained staff means that operators can meet their RG obligations without negatively impacting the user experience.

A 360-degree approach to RG

Implementing a full, metric-based assessment of players for RG risks should be the central part of a wider, full company approach to the area.

Shockingly, many operators still do not have a comprehensive policy which ensures the effectiveness of all responsible gambling processes is constantly monitored.

As the regulatory landscape is constantly evolving, it is critical RG policies do the same. Failing to meet the latest standards simply because you didn’t know about the change is no excuse. At Maxima, we work closely with operators to gather findings in regular periodic reviews.

Another important area is staff training. There has been a temptation in the past to keep RG policy siloed away from the rest of the company.

This is no longer a legitimate approach. Instead, every business area needs to be aware of the company’s obligations, from marketing through to development.

This 360-degree approach will not only reduce the risk of an infraction but also save your company time, resources and money. No one wants to have to overhaul a new product or marketing campaign because it is not compliant.

There is a genuine opportunity now for operators to gain a competitive advantage through innovative RG policy.

One area that will be particularly interesting to watch over the coming years is the implementation of artificial intelligence upon large data sets, which could uncover completely new approaches to risk assessment to provide better coverage.

Regardless, it is now very clear that operators must take responsible gambling obligations more seriously than they have been. How we as an industry approach this challenge will define our success over the coming years.

Antonio Zanghi is an online gambling compliance expert with years of experience in the field. He has previously worked at IGT where he was involved with both regulatory and technical compliance, successfully managing compliance in the Canadian and European regions. He now runs Maxima Compliance, a full-service compliance consulting firm supporting online gambling businesses.