The UK Gambling Commission has emphatically warned UK gaming providers that it is imperative to adhere to the standards set in the areas of transparency and online security. The reason for this warning is unattractive. Some online casinos were caught providing games that had the ability to make in-game purchases for additional bonus features. But this is strictly prohibited in Great Britain. Read Article
UK Gambling Commission is quick and tough
The purpose of a gaming authority is to implement the prescribed legal rules as optimally and seamlessly as possible. It is in the nature of things that there are occasional rule violations. But the UK Gambling Commission has shown once again that violating the licensing rules can make it uncomfortable. A total of six gambling providers were found to violate a very important rule. The players had the opportunity to buy additional features from these providers in certain slots. In one case, the additional feature was probably worth £ 3,000. This is an adventurous amount, but probably has been paid by one or the other customer. In the UK, such features with a purchase option are prohibited in games of chance. You can check here. Therefore, the affected six gambling providers were contacted immediately after the matter was noticed. A positive indication of the regulatory power of the authority: The games and features were removed immediately.
It may well be that there was no bad will among the casino operators. The features that are no longer available are a clear violation of the rules of the UK Gambling Commission. But it may well be that the casino operators did not notice that there were such games in their portfolio. Of course, that shouldn't happen. But if you look at modern online casinos, it is easy to find providers that have thousands of games in their portfolio. What is attractive for customers can sometimes lead to the problem for casino operators that comprehensive control of the games offered is difficult. But of course that shouldn't be an excuse. A quality assurance process may need to be introduced, for example, where every game, that is added to the portfolio must meet the specified criteria. However, it can be problematic for casino operators that different rules apply in almost every country. For example, what is permitted in Great Britain does not have to be permitted in Germany. The reverse also applies, of course, this article.
Warning also affects other areas
The prohibited features with purchase option are the main reason why the UK Gambling Commission is warning all licensees. But the gaming authority uses the occasion to point out other problematic areas. A very important detail is the repeated indication that gaming providers must not encourage their customers to compensate for or even exceed losses through additional games. In principle, it should always be conveyed that the casino visitors set themselves a limit and, when this limit has been exhausted, stop playing. Under no circumstances should an online casino give the impression that it is always possible to make up for all losses through winnings. This doesn't work for purely mathematical reasons.
The reputable gaming providers have been advising their customers for years that these are entertainment offers with no guaranteed profit. Nobody should think that it is possible to force happiness in any way. Therefore it is important to accept losses as part of the game. If you want to have fun with gambling, you should generally accept that it is always possible to lose. If the fun of playing only depends on the fact that a profit is made, something basically goes wrong. It is good that the UK Gambling Commission explicitly reminds all licensees of this fact. It can be assumed that the British Gaming Authority will take a closer look in the future and may also impose penalties, if providers violate the rules. That's right, because in the end the serious gaming providers who strictly adhere to all legal requirements also suffer from the competitors who simply do what they want. It is welcomed that the UK Gambling Commission has been rigorous and resolute in the past few years against providers who break the rules. This becomes clear again in the current case.
German gambling fans can hope for strict regulation
German casino visitors have to live with the fact that the regulation is being taken over by foreign gaming authorities. In most cases, this means that a licensing authority in another EU country is responsible for ensuring that the casino adheres to basic rules. This works surprisingly well in practice. For example, there are many online casinos with a Maltese casino license that is practically on par with the UK license in terms of seriousness and quality. But German gambling fans can look forward to the fact that there will be a German gambling authority from mid-2021. In any case, that is the plan of the German federal states, which have basically agreed to regulate online casinos. The new gaming authority will be responsible for implement the rules still to be negotiated for online gambling in Germany. There is currently some evidence that the rules will become even stricter than in the UK.
The German federal states have agreed in principle to regulate online gambling nationwide. There are still a few points in the basic agreement that are very controversial among gaming experts. Among other things, there should be a betting limit of 1 euro per slot round. A monthly deposit limit of 1,000 euros could also come. A lot can still happen with gambling regulation in Germany. The new State Treaty on Gaming has not yet been signed. But everything indicates that Germany will have more strictly regulated online gambling in the future than before. If the regulation is implemented on the basis of reasonable rules, this can help to raise player protection overall to a higher level. However, at the moment many experts fear that too strict rules could leave a large part of the market in the gray area. Ideally, the rules will become stricter, but not so strict that most gambling fans will not use the legal offers in the future. If that succeeds, the German gambling authority could become a real win for the numerous casino fans in Germany.
