The area of responsible gambling has seen significant growth in recent years, with many companies emerging that focus on analysis and prevention, offering new perspectives on the issue. Despite the dedicated efforts of numerous professionals in this field, questions remain regarding the effectiveness of interventions aimed at protecting players.
Sarah Ramanauskas and Simo Dragicevic are key figures in this initiative. Ramanauskas has established her reputation in the industry through her work with organizations such as Gambling Integrity, BetKnowmore, and The Howard League. Dragicevic, known for founding BetBuddy and his tenure at Playtech, brings valuable experience. The collaboration between Ramanauskas and Dragicevic offers a fresh approach that holds promise for long-term player care.
Their new venture, the Game Safety Institute (GSI), aims to encompass all facets of the player experience, creating a comprehensive understanding of the various causes of harm to individuals engaged in gambling. This ambitious project prompts reflection on whether the industry truly needs another responsible gambling-centric organization. Ramanauskas asserts that the GSI's unique and valid approach is indeed necessary.
“The Game Safety Institute is a starting point for any operator that wants to understand how to make the gambling products available to their consumers safer to play with, more entertaining, more useful and in line with their customer needs,” Ramanauskas states.
She elaborates, “We have brought together a whole load of research insight, a lot of which Simo has contributed to and started to flip the story from ‘We’ve got some products that people want to play’ to, ‘We’ve got people who want to play, what are the safest products to give them?’”
This involves a significant shift in focus. Historically, the responsibility for opting out of potentially harmful gambling practices has fallen on the players themselves. In contrast, GSI aims to integrate safety mechanisms throughout all levels of interaction, often without the player’s conscious awareness.
“If we think about consumer protection and regulation, most of the focus has been around the player,” explains Dragicevic. “And understanding the player, from a variety of perspectives, is really key from a regulatory perspective.”
He notes the situation in the UK, where there has been an emphasis on improving responsible gambling tools. For instance, services like Gamstop allow for self-exclusion across various online operators, while a similar service, SENSE, exists for land-based operations.
Dragicevic contends that the tightening regulations surrounding players will reach a limit. He adds that factors such as the gambling environment, product design, and an individual's behavior also contribute to the risk of harmful gambling.
The idea for GSI emerged from a simple lunch meeting where both individuals discussed the next big focus in the industry. “We met for lunch – fish and chips – and both agreed that product safety is where the next big thing will be,” Dragicevic recalls.
However, being ahead of the industry presents challenges, particularly in establishing a viable concept without jeopardizing existing businesses. The duo conducted research to gauge perceptions of product safety within casinos and lottery operators.
Dragicevic continues, “We started off by sending out a survey to some of our favourite lottery and casino operators around the world asking about product risk and product safety: is this important to you? What do you think? What are you using at the moment to decide whether or not your products are safe? Most of them came back and said ‘this is a really important topic, we don’t think we’re necessarily doing it terribly well.’”
Following this, they worked on establishing ground rules that would position GSI as a center of excellence in the realm of product safety.
The GSI’s comprehensive evaluation of games like roulette exemplifies the varying levels of player risk associated with different formats. For instance, a land-based casino environment, with its social interactions and dealer oversight, contrasts sharply with a fast-paced online gambling interface where those protections are absent.
When defining “unsafe” within a gambling context, Dragicevic explains, “When you think about products, the risk element is really what defines gambling. If you take the risk element away, then it’s not gambling and it takes away a huge part of the experience.”
The GSI aims to develop an assessment framework that evaluates game design, marketing strategies, and player education to enable operators to measure and manage risk effectively. This strategic perspective allows for a nuanced understanding of how different factors interact regarding player risk and safety. Additionally, the establishment of a product intelligence platform will enhance suppliers' ability to share game data for more thorough assessments.
The comprehensive nature of GSI’s approach highlights the importance of examining games, player behavior, and delivery methods in ways previously unobtainable. This initiative could facilitate sustainable relationships between operators and players by increasing awareness of individual risks.
Ramanauskas asserts that the traditional methods of promoting responsible gambling may become unnecessary since these principles will be integrated into the entire gambling experience. “We don’t see responsible gambling as being a separate thing outside of the player experience, which is what it is at the moment,” she notes.
She critiques the current practice where responsible gambling measures are often only accessible through multiple clicks on a website, rather than being an inherent part of the player’s engagement.
Ramanauskas emphasizes, “It’s about understanding when you get a new customer onto your site, what do they want to do? Why are they there? That’s what the gambling industry should be doing with safer gambling. It’s about baking it into the product.”
Dragicevic agrees, indicating that responsible gambling should function seamlessly, without the player needing to consciously consider it. He stresses that policies must steer clear of exploiting player behavior for profit.
Nevertheless, operators face the dilemma of maintaining profitability while incorporating responsible practices into their operations. Ramanauskas underscores that keeping employees engaged and ethical in their work is crucial. She offers a poignant example of a disgraced operator in the UK, whose staff left scathing reviews online, expressing disillusionment about their role in morally questionable practices.
“For the gambling industry to attract and retain high-quality staff, they need to demonstrate they are acting in the best interests of their players,” Ramanauskas asserts.
In conclusion, pursuing a path of responsible gambling could lead to better outcomes for all stakeholders involved.
