The Guardian reported that the UKGC may be considering measures that would require from gambling companies to first sign with self-exclusion initiative GamStop as part of their licensing application. The UKGC has refused to comment.
GamStop May Become a Necessity for UK Gambling Licenses
GamStop is finally going to release its full framework, establishing common self-exclusion practices on the territory of the United Kingdom, sources have revealed. According to the Guardian, a UK newspaper, GamStop membership may now be a necessary condition for any UK betting or gaming company obtaining a license from the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).
Last week, the regulator declined to comment and Guardian expected an official announcement. The UKGC never commented on the article. However, the rumors remain just as strong, with people close to the matter suggesting that all operators will now need to apply for GamStop as part of their licensing agreement with the UKGC.
No official confirmation has come yet. GamStop took about 18 months to develop in full and at the beginning of the year, the BBC reported serious issues with the program. In fact, players who had excluded themselves had been able to go around the exclusion by simply altering their last name in the system.
Another problem has been the incidence of operators ending up sending promotional offers to individuals who had excluded themselves from gambling activities. At the time, the UKGC issued a stern reprimand to the Remote Gambling Association (RGA), which is in charge of GamStop.
Operators That Break the Rules
Operators such as LeoVegas and Sky Bet had ended up promoting gambling products to problem gamblers, it became clear. The explanation offered at the time was that operators and GamStop didn’t share a list of all individuals who had excluded themselves.
LeoVegas was hit with a £627,000-fine in May, with the UKGC warning against such behavior in the future.
Presently, the UKGC is not formally endorsing GamStop, which is already believed to have signed up tens of thousands of problem gamblers. In the United Kingdom, estimated 99% of all active operators are currently signed for GamStop in a bid to boost their overall credibility and reputation.
However, the UKGC has not formally endorsed the initiative. Nevertheless, the nation’s watchdog has been seeking to very actively restrict gambling harm, specifically the one resulting from negligence on the part of operators.
The watchdog has also been very actively targeting business in the United Kingdom spearheading a ban against the betting limits for fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs), moving the maximum allowable bet from £100 to £2.
The Labour party in the United Kingdom has also been a very active proponent of measures designed to protect vulnerable gamers, including in matters such as the FOBTs ban as well as the more strict identity verification process that now requires operators to verify players’ identity prior to allowing them to place any bets on their websites.
Meanwhile, the UKGC has issued penalties worth £14.5 million, some of the highest in the entire world to operators failing to meet various regulatory norms.
