UKGC: Casino Revenues Drops After Safer Gameplay Initiatives Implementation

Plunge in casino revenues over safer player protection initiatives

Various owners of gambling companies and betting shops have reported a dip in revenues since the implementation of safer gambling initiatives, as stipulated by the UK Gambling Commission. While the revenues have taken a hit, the owners have also stated that the current cost of living crisis has not slowed down punters’ betting habits.

These companies, which include Sky Bet and Betfair, said that their UK revenue dropped by 4% year on year in the first half of this year. Furthermore, online gambling company 888, which was acquired last year by William Hil International for a record £2.2bn deal, saw its UK revenues drop by a quarter to £121m in the first six months.

The companies have gone on to say that the impact on their UK revenues was simply due to the implementation measures that were adopted to tackle problem gambling. These include limits on online slot machines as well as mandatory deposit limits for players who are under the age of 25.

Proposals to reform gambling laws have been postponed after Boris Johnson’s resignation.

London-based Flutter, which owns some of these companies, has said that they are confident that the safer gambling changes will help them position themselves for the better in the future.

Flutter Chief Executive Peter Jackso said: “We currently see no discernible signs of a consumer slow down and resultant reduced spending levels across our businesses.”

Financial analyst Danni Hewson at AJ Bell also reinforced this point, adding, “This reinforces the idea that people will be happy to keep betting in the hope of winning big during more difficult economic times.”

Itai Pazget, the Chief Executive of 888, also added that these mandatory player protections have put them in an even stronger position for the future.

In March of this year, the UK Gambling Commission fined 888 Casino £.9.4. This is not the biggest fine for an online gambling site in history. It is only the third highest in the history of UK gambling regulation. This fine was given out over the multiple fairings in the casino, putting a halt to players losing huge sums of money during the pandemic.