News

For years, so-called “VIP lounges” in Australian clubs and pubs have been proliferating, even though they have hardly ever been associated with luxury or any special customer services. In fact, the aforementioned lounges have been used as a well-known code for the offering of so-called pokies, especially considering the fact that advertising the presence of poker machines is not allowed in the country. Various scientists, lawmakers and campaigners have been insisting on the implementation of further restrictions in terms of poker machines, saying that the very existence of VIP lounges…

Researchers have been discussing the potential impact of the UK Government’s White Paper and the ongoing changes in Britain’s regulated gambling sector on the planned overhaul of Australia’s gambling regulation. As Casino Guardian previously reported, UK Government published its White Paper of the Gambling Act review late in April 2023, following much delay and anticipation. The White Paper features proposals for some considerable changes to the country’s gambling market to make sure that the British gambling laws are suitable to regulate the sector in the digital age. The Government has…

The beginning of the week saw some Palmerston North officials announce that the number of poker machines in the city could be gradually reduced in case the local residents support the City Council’s proposal to introduce a measure called a sinking lid policy. The Community Committee of the Council has approved putting the plan out for public consultation. However, councillors and staff are both sceptical about the efficiency of the proposed sinking lid policy when it comes to the minimisation of gambling-related harm and risks associated with problem gambling. As…

An independent regulatory commission has found that English striker Ivan Toney placed wagers on matches that involved his own team on a regular basis, including 13 occasions when he bet against his club to win. The commission has also found that the player gave “clearly false” answers to the investigators into his breaches of gambling rules. The football player has faced an eight-month suspension from the game after pleading guilty to a count of 232 violations of the Football Association’s rule E8, under which players are not allowed to bet…

To celebrate the King’s Coronation, the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has decided to make a huge donation to charities, with major UK bookmakers also participating in the event. The funds, which will be donated to beneficiaries will be generated through the feature handicap Britannia Stakes race, which will be held at this year’s Royal Ascot on June 22. Among the beneficiaries, there are organisations like SportsAid, which is under the patronage of Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales, the Ascot Racecourse Supports, Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Holocaust Educational Trust,…

Earlier today, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) announced that PPB Counterparty Service Limited, t/a Paddy Power and Betfair, is issued a £490,000 fine for sending promotional content to vulnerable consumers. The UK gambling regulator revealed that customers who had self-excluded received a push notification on the operator’s app, promoting enhanced odds on a football match from the English Premier League. Paddy Power and Betfair Operator to Pay a Fine Due to Targeting Self-Excluded Consumers According to the official statement of the UKGC, on 21 November 2021, Paddy Power and Betfair…

An independent Member of Parliament in Australia is looking to uproot all gambling advertising as the number of players in the country’s leniently regulated market rises. Zoe Daniel, a teal independent from Melbourne, submitted a bill to the House of Representatives yesterday, proposing to eradicate all gambling-related marketing from the Australian airwaves. The Broadcasting Services Amendment (Prohibition of Gambling Advertisements) Bill 2023 is the full title of the proposed piece of legislation, which pushes for the complete removal of betting ads from television, radio, and streaming platforms. The Broadcasting Act…

Betting giant Entain funded a lobbying campaign that rallied gamblers to complain to their local Members of Parliament about the recently proposed gambling industry reforms. Last month, the British government unveiled a white paper with proposals to amend the local gambling legislation and enforce stricter regulations on licensed operators. Some of the proposed measures aim to minimise gambling-related harm but could also negatively impact the bottom line of betting brands like Entain’s Ladbrokes, PartyCasino, and Coral. In a press release published in late April, Entain’s boss Jette Nygaard-Andersen seemingly embraced…

Several weeks after the UK Government released its White Paper on gambling, the National Health Service (NHS) released a new report featuring the most current data about problem gambling rates in the country. Apart from providing valuable information about gambling addiction, the new report outlined the percentage rates of male and female gamblers and data about the most popular forms of gambling among local residents within the last 12 months. The recent report of the National Health Service starts with details about problem gambling and reveals that based on the…

A cross-party Treasury committee has called for the UK Government to regulate cryptocurrency trading as a form of gambling rather than merely a financial service. According to the cross-party group of Members of Parliament, the Government must avoid wasting more taxpayer money on the promotion of various technological innovations, such as digital tokens, without informing the wider public about the clear benefits of such a move. The committee also noted that cryptocurrency trading and investing can cause addictions, just like gambling. However, while the underlying blockchain technology could give an…