A recent investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) resulted in gambling firms no longer being able to hold players’ money with unfair online promotions. In 2016, CMA launched an operation to investigation, in collaboration with the Gambling Commission the transparency and fairness in which online gambling companies were acting with. This change resulted in quite an overhaul within the industry and saw three of the leading operators in the market William Hill, Ladbrokes and PT Entertainment commit to change the way their bonuses work and ensure that players are not restricted from accessing their own money and withdrawing it. These positive changes have to now been adopted across the board in the industry. Any firms who don’t abide by these new rules will find themselves on the receiving end of regulatory action from the UK Gambling Commission.
Some of the other changes that have now come into play include players not having to play through their own money a set amount of times before being allowed to withdraw, players can’t be automatically opted into publicity campaigns and also gambling firms must make any gameplay restrictions very clear and this will prevent them been able to confiscate players funds based upon vague and unclear terms.
Nisha Arora, CMA Senior Director for Consumer Enforcement, explained:
“We know online gambling is always going to be risky, but firms must also play fair. People should get the deal they’re expecting if they sign up to a promotion, and be able to walk away with their money when they want to.”
Gambling Commission Chief Executive, Sarah Harrison, added:
“Gambling operators must treat customers fairly – but some have been relying on terms that are unclear with too many strings attached.”
Some of these changes have not been that well received by a number operators in the gambling industry as these promotions have been critical to attracting new players to register on their sites or through their apps and mobile-first sites, with mobile gambling an increasing trend in the industry. The promotions that have faced the most scrutiny are the ones which offer bonus funds if players buy in to the promotion with their own money, and the CMA found that in many cases players misunderstood the promotion and would have to play for a lot longer than anticipated before they were in a position to withdraw funds.
It is very possible though that the CMA will continue to impose further restrictions moving forwards as enforcement activity is ongoing. Their main aim will be to try and prevent any restrictions being imposed that stop players withdrawing their own funds. Some ways in which this could take effect is stopping making players withdraw jackpots or large sums of money they may have won over time in instalments and also stop funds from been confiscated in an account that hasn’t been used for a period of time.
Another factor that could affect the UK gambling industry in the near future would be the possible introduction by the Government of a ‘Place of Consumption Tax’. This tax in addition to possible further changes in the regulatory environment will result in the cost of operating within the British gambling market continue to rise and it is likely that it is only the larger operators who will have the financial resources to deal with this and it might mean that we see consolidation in the market and the exit of smaller operators.
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