While it would be fair to say that COVID-19 has put a lot of other political priorities to the wayside, one argument that has not stopped during this is the Gambling Commission and the UK online casino network. With more arguments going on still about everything from licensing to advertising through to fairness, the industry is poised for yet another slapdown.
Apparently, companies have been given thorough orders about what to look out for during the COVID-19 pandemic. One thing that was put across by the UK Gambling Commission is that they expect companies to implement “tighter measures” than before.
The confusing part in the recent debate comes from the fact that while demanding tighter regulation, the UKGC also noted that it had seen “no evidence” to suggest an increase in problem gambling. This contradicts more or less everything we have seen so far throughout the pandemic, so what does that actually mean?
However, it’s all quite ambiguous. The claim is that since many land-based betters might turn to the online scene instead, they might be at risk of gambling harm. Is that really a fair enough standard to start imposing further restrictions on the industry as a whole, though?
Operators are expected to thoroughly check all triggers for new customers to understand their patterns in playing and spending. They also expect ‘continual monitoring’ of all players during the COVID-19 outbreak. It just looks like a continuation of the same debates that were being had prior to the pandemic.