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Harsh Regulation Could Increase Black Market Gambling By 33%
By Shane Addinall Nov 23, 2020 IndustryA survey by Svenska Spel points to the danger of harsh local regulations driving players to unregulated casino sites as a way to gamble freely - while they may do so legally it could be harmful in the long run.The recent decision by the Swedish government to introduce a series of gambling restrictions has been met with severe criticism from several industry bodies. The most common stance against the imposed limitations was the lack of supporting evidence – both for the need for the measures as well as the viability of the controls themselves.
The imposed restrictions include:
- SEK 5000 weekly deposit limit
- SEK 5000 weekly loss limit on Vegas slots
- SEK 100 welcome bonus limit
- Playtime limitations
Branscheforenigen för Onlinespel (BOS) argued that by implementing these drastic changes in the short term the government could be driving players to gamble at unregulated casinos which hampers the industry’s ability to protect its players.
“The duty of care is the cornerstone of consumer protection in the Swedish gaming regulation. This has now at least temporarily been put out of action by the government.”
Based on a recent player survey by Svenska Spel seems to prove that BOS’s supposition was more accurate than they may have realised.
Limitation Backlash
Svenska Spel took the initiative to survey more than 400 local players, anonymously, to ask them about the impact of the control measures on their gambling decisions and activities.
The topics the survey focused on were:
- Whether they reduced their overall gambling
- Whether they played at additional casinos
- Whether they began playing at unregulated casinos
Unsurprisingly 60% of respondents admitted to signing up and claiming welcome bonuses at additional casinos in order to maintain, and in some cases increase, their online activity since the new restrictions. This is because the SEK 5000 weekly limit is applied per casino, not per player.
In a concerning turn of events, 33% of the surveyed players noted that since being blocked by Svenska Spel they have signed up and unregulated online casinos to take advantage of the higher bonuses and limit-free playtime.
Local Slot Hall Curfew
The survey seems to add credence the concerns raised by BOS that rather than creating a safe gambling environment the government's decision could lead to increased black market gambling which will harm local players in the long run.
As if to double down on their poor decision-making streak the Swedish government imposed additional restrictions on land-based gambling venues. As of November 20th, gambling venues that server alcohol and offer slot games may no longer operate between 10pm and 11 am.
Spelinspektionen simply stated:
“This prevents the provision of games after 10pm, regardless of whether this game could be provided without inconvenience”
While this new measure will not apply to larger land-based casinos but rather to bars, restaurants, and other smaller localised slot venues it could still be the catalyst which drives locals to play slots at online gambling sites outside of Sweden.
Which as BOS said limits the industry’s ability to provide the support and protection inherent to its duty of care.
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