Gambling companies welcome arrival of White Paper

The Gambling White Paper is finally here, and the industry has mustered a quick response. The first impression is that nobody is really panicking. The changes talked about in the months leading up to the paper’s publication have mostly turned out to be true. Some, such as charities, have cautioned that certain aspects of the proposals can be improved while others have insisted that time is of the essence here as the industry prepares for one or two years of further deliberation before actual changes are made.

Now, some of the industry’s biggest companies are also stepping up and offering their opinion of what these changes mean and why they are important. Better Collective has hailed the arrival of the Gambling White Paper and said that the suggestions in the document coincided with the company’s own commitment to protecting consumers.

The company did advice to strike the "right balance" between protecting vulnerable consumers and not impede those who enjoy gambling as a fun activity to continue doing so. Better Collective is confident that the impact of these consultations will be insignificant at best for the company, as it has been anticipating the changes and already moved to work on implementing them proactively.

Entain CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen also spoke about the changes that were coming and hailed the arrival of the White Paper.

"We welcome the clarity that it will bring to the industry and customers. In leading the industry on player protection, we have already implemented a comprehensive range of actions to protect our customers, such as our industry-leading Advanced Responsibility and Care safer gaming program, personalized online slots staking limits, and the implementation of an affordability model across the UK.," Nygaard-Andersen said.

Flutter Entertainment hailed the White Paper as an "important and necessary change" for the industry, sharing an opinion that operators need to raise their standards and make responsible and safe gambling their one and only priority in the long term. The company stated that it has already proactively implemented a number of player protection measures to achieve just this.

Not least, there was the Betting and Gaming Council which said that the White Paper was a significant event and now time would be needed to weigh the proposals. The BGC was pleased that blanket bans and the implementation of mass affordability checks without considering the needs of different consumers are not part of the core offer.

"These proposed measures will mean significant change but hopefully much-needed regulatory stability to ensure our members can focus entirely on delivering for customers," the BGC added. The BGC urges the White Paper to serve as the means to "draw a line under the lengthy and often polarized debates on gambling."

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