Compliance Updates
PRIZE DEBT: CALLS TO REVIEW GAMBLING REGULATIONS AS CONSUMERS RACK UP MILLIONS ON CREDIT CARDS
· Consumers spent £117m on credit cards entering prize draws and competitions, which are not currently regulated by the Government, in a bid to win dream prizes(1)
· Promise of a charitable donation makes nearly half of participants more likely to enter
· Jumbo Interactive calls on the UK Government to regulate the growing prize draw and competition market and for a clampdown on credit cards use
The UK Government is being urged to review current gambling regulations, as new research reveals consumers are racking up millions on credit cards entering popular prize draws and competitions.
The research from Jumbo Interactive found consumers spent £117m on credit cards entering prize draws and competitions in the last year, which due to a loophole, are not currently regulated in the same way as lotteries and raffles.
The study found nearly one in 10 people who entered ‘big ticket’ prize draws, offering the chance to win multi-million pound houses or luxury cars, or prize competitions, have ended up in debt as a result.
Using credit cards to gamble was banned in April 2020, but a loophole in regulation means there are currently no restrictions on commercial prize draw or prize competition companies. For prize draws, this is because they offer “free” entry methods, where it’s possible to play by post for the cost of a postage stamp. Yet, despite this ‘free to enter’ route, an estimated £860m was spent on entries into prize draws in the last year[iii].
Prize draws and competitions that promise a donation to charity also makes 45% of participants more likely to enter, yet over half of players (57%) admit to not checking how much actually goes to good causes.
Jumbo Interactive is now calling for greater regulation of the growing prize draw and competition market, highlighting significant consumer protection concerns over credit card debt, as well as a lack of transparency around prizes and charity donations from entry fees.
It is also urging consumers to check the T&Cs as there is little enforcement of minimum donation percentage for prize draws and competitions. This compares to regulated society lotteries, which give a minimum of 20% of gross ticket sales and often over 50% to good causes.
Nigel Atkinson, UK General Manager, Jumbo Interactive comments: “A huge amount is being spent on credit cards on prize draws, pushing people into debt – despite the free entry option being the reason they are exempt from oversight. With so much money changing hands, the government needs to look at the proper regulation of prize draws and competitions to better protect consumers.
“For many, the fact that some of the cost of entering prize draws and competitions goes to charity is a big part of why they enter. But it remains easy for companies to bury information in the terms and conditions about how much actually goes to charity. Society lotteries on the other hand have minimum donation rates and help raise funds for a wide range of important causes, large and small. Public trust is crucial for society lotteries to operate successfully, and increased regulation of the prize draw and competition market will offer that consistency and transparency.”
Tony Vick, Chair of The Lotteries Council, adds: “The Lotteries Council is increasingly concerned about the use of prize draws operated by commercial gambling companies which are marketing themselves in a similar way to charity lotteries. Lotteries face a series of legislative hurdles that restrict our ability to grow and raise funds for good causes while prize draws face no limits on how many tickets they can sell, what prizes they can offer, and choose whether and how much to give to any charity. We hope the Government looks at this to ensure a fairer playing field.”
Falling foul of scams has also been an issue for 15% of entrants, including paying money for postage on a prize that never arrives, paying a significant amount of money on phone calls or texts to enter a competition without it being clear that it would cost that much, or winning a prize that turned out to be of less value than advertised.
Notably, 72% of those who enter lotteries, draws or competitions think prize competitions and prize draws should be regulated in the same way as gambling.
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ACDV certification
GoldenRace becomes the first and only Virtual Sports provider certified for Retail in Colombia
GoldenRace, leading B2B provider of Virtual Sports and betting solutions, has become the first and only Virtual Sports provider officially authorised to operate in Colombia’s Retail betting market under the new ACDV regulation.
The certification is based on ACDV (Virtual Racing and Sports Betting) standards, published by Coljuegos, Colombia’s national gambling authority, at the end of last year (2024) as part of a new regulatory framework for Virtual Sports in the Retail sector, outlined in Resolution No. 20241200028984.
With this updated certification now in force, GoldenRace proudly leads the way, allowing betting shops across Colombia to legally continue offering its award-winning Virtual Sports portfolio – including bestsellers like Virtual Football, Horse Racing, and Greyhound Racing – fully compliant with the latest national requirements.
“This process involved extensive testing at a prestigious, internationally accredited laboratory,” explained Julio César Duque, LatAm Director at GoldenRace. “For us, it’s a clear confirmation of the strength of our portfolio and how well our solutions perform in Colombia.”
With the ACDV certification now active, the company is expanding its market-leading Virtual Sports content to Retail, giving local operators more.
“After a successful GAT Colombia 2025 and with the Peru Gaming Show on the horizon, we’re thrilled to keep growing in LatAm,” added Martin Wachter, CEO & Founder of Softquo, the Holding behind GoldenRace. “Colombia holds a special place for us: it’s home to one of our offices and our reforestation initiatives. We are deeply proud that its Retail operators can now enjoy the best of GoldenRace through this new certification.”
The post GoldenRace becomes the first and only Virtual Sports provider certified for Retail in Colombia appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
EGT Digital is already an authorized iGaming provider for Belgium. The company has recently received its license from the Belgian Gaming Commission, thanks to which its core products – the X-Nave platform, the Gaming Aggregator, and its in-house slot and dice games, are now available on the local market.
“The Belgian gaming community can enjoy our full range of premium products, which have proven to be the preferred choice in numerous jurisdictions around the world,” said Marieta Peleva, Sales Manager for Belgium, Poland, and the Czech Republic at EGT. “In addition to our established portfolio, we have also recently developed a dedicated line of dice games tailored specifically for the Belgian Class B+ market, which reflects our devotion to providing localized, compliant, and engaging gaming solutions. Whether operators are looking for a complete solution for their business or want to enrich their betting sites with attractive and diverse content, they can always count on us.”
EGT Digital’s iGaming platform, X-Nave, provides operators with everything they need to achieve success in the online gaming sector. Its 4 main modules: Sport Product, Gaming Aggregator, CRM Engine, and Payment Gateway, can function as part of the turnkey solution or as standalone modules, as they are able to integrate with third-party solutions.
With a rich portfolio of 24,000 games from over 300 popular providers and numerous player engagement features, the Gaming Aggregator enables operators to create personalized offerings that perfectly fit their customers’ tastes.
EGT Digital’s vast range of casino solutions, covering over 160 in-house developed slot titles and several top-performing jackpots, are widely preferred by different types of players because of their great thematic diversity and numerous attractive bonuses.
Tsvetomira Drumeva, Head of Sales at the company, concluded: “EGT Digital’s license for Belgium is a substantial accomplishment, which not only solidifies our position as a leading iGaming provider but also reaffirms our commitment to contributing to the development of the global gaming environment.”
The post EGT Digital with a license to operate in Belgium appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Tabcorp Holdings Limited (TAB) has been penalised $4,003,270 for sending more than 5700 marketing messages to customers of its VIP Programme that broke Australia’s spam laws.
An Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigation found that TAB sent 2598 SMS and WhatsApp messages to VIP customers between 1 February and 1 May 2024 without providing an option to unsubscribe from the messages.
The ACMA also found that 3148 SMS and WhatsApp messages did not contain adequate sender information across the same period, and 11 SMS messages were sent without consent between 15 February and 29 April 2024.
Authority Member Samantha Yorke said the breaches were deeply concerning as they involved non-compliance by a large and established gambling provider that targeted VIP Programme customers.
“This is the first time the ACMA has investigated and found spam breaches in a gambling VIP program. These programs often involve personalised messages offering incentives such as bonus bets, deposit matching, rebates and offers of tickets to sporting and other events.
“The gambling industry needs to understand that spam laws apply to all direct marketing—whether it’s generic campaigns or personalised messages,” Ms Yorke said.
“VIPs should not be confused with gambling ‘high-rollers’. These types of gambling VIP programs can involve customers who are not well off and are experiencing significant losses,” Ms Yorke said.
“It is utterly unacceptable that TAB did not have adequate spam compliance systems in place.”
Under the Spam Act 2003, businesses must have consent before sending marketing messages. Messages sent with consent must also contain a working unsubscribe option and information about the sender.
“When people make choices to unsubscribe from a service they must be able to do so easily and their decisions must be respected by companies,” Ms Yorke said.
TAB has also entered into a 3-year court-enforceable undertaking. This includes an independent review of its direct marketing systems, making improvements, running quarterly audits of its VIP direct marketing, training staff and reporting to the ACMA regularly.
“The ACMA will be watching closely to ensure TAB meets its commitments and complies with the spam laws in future,” Ms Yorke said.
Cracking down on gambling safeguards and spam rules are current compliance priorities for the ACMA. Over the last 18 months businesses have been penalised over $16.9 million for spam breaches.
The post ACMA: TAB Penalised $4 Million for Spamming VIP Customers appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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