NSW Gaming Venues to Install Facial Recognition Technology to Help Identify Self-excluded Gamblers

Published

2 years ago

October 21, 2022

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Problem gamblers will have their faces scanned using facial recognition technology to help them stay away from gaming venues in New South Wales.

Cameras will be rolled out in pubs and clubs across the state from 2023 to help identify gamblers who have opted in to the state’s Multi-Venue Self-Exclusion scheme.

The scheme already uses digital images to identify problem gamblers and ban them from entering gaming venues.

Gamblers who have joined the self-exclusion scheme have supplied their own image – and have given their full consent to the image being stored.

Director of liquor and policing for Australian Hotels Association [AHA] NSW, John Green, said the addition of facial recognition technology would improve identification.

“People can change over time and using facial recognition technology just makes sure we’ve got the best chance of identifying those people as they enter,” he said.

“We’ve tested how it operates and quite frankly it can identify people wearing masks, wearing glasses and trying to avoid detection.”

Cameras will scan patrons’ faces as they enter a venue and compare their faces to a database of problem gamblers who have consented to be part of the self-exclusion scheme.

If a problem gambler is identified, an alert is sent to venue staff who can then intervene and refer the person to support services.

ClubsNSW CEO Josh Landis said the technology would only identify problem gamblers and would not impact other patrons.

“This is designed in a targeted way to help those who have a problem — not to impact anybody else,” he said.

“We believe it’s critical to support those people that have a problem in a targeted way where ordinary people are not affected.

“They can enjoy their pub or club the way that they ordinarily would — but the people who have a problem are genuinely looked after to ensure they get the help that they need.”

The technology is a joint venture between ClubsNSW and the AHA and will eventually be rolled out across the state.

It is already being used in around 100 venues across NSW and follows a similar scheme in South Australia where it is used in 300 venues.

Mr Green said a survey of self-excluded gamblers found 85% supported the use of facial recognition.

“It really is effective at identifying those people who want to be excluded and want our help,” he said.

“This is about improving the process that we’ve already got in place, but using the latest technology, to ensure that we are doing as much as we can to get them the treatment they need.”

NSW Gaming Minister Kevin Anderson said the initiative would help people stay in control of their gambling addiction.

Sends company confirmed its participation in the ICE London Conference 2024

Published

4 months ago

January 17, 2024

Zoltan Tundik

ICE is the global showcase of innovative technologies, home to 600+ international brands providing access to products and services designed to enhance growth potential. Sends financial company confirmed its participation in the conference inviting to the brand’s stand for meetings.

The 6th of February is the opening day of ICE London 2024. The Sends team will spend three days of the conference meeting the current partners and establishing relationships with new ones in London. On its LinkedIn page, the company noticed that it had set up a stand to provide all the information about activity and business propositions, to meet with associates, and to engage with conference participants.

“Sends team is eager to meet the partners and new people at ICE London 2024. This event is iconic among gaming companies and market players. Organizers predict record attendance for the last London edition. We can’t miss this global event’s opportunities” , commented Anastasiia Pervushyna, Director/MLRO in Sends.

One of the shareholders (owners) of this company is Alona Shevtsova, a businesswoman, philanthropist, and active participant in the Ukrainian and UK FinTech community.

“Recent international industry events during the past year have already clearly shown the value and significance of in-person events for our industry and we expect that to be very evident in London as well”, Alona Shevtsova added.

Sends provides Internet acquiring, multicurrency personal and business accounts. Opening a SEPA/SWIFT/Faster Payments bank account is available within 48 hours after submitting the necessary documents. Sends is available in the web and app versions.

In 2025, the ICE London conference will relocate to Barcelona, Spain. The historic edition of the world’s largest and most international gaming expo ends in Great Britain. This country has hosted the event since 2013.

ICE London 2024 will be held from the 6th to 8th February at ExCeL London. To schedule a meeting with Sends representatives, please use [email protected] email or the conference application.

*Sends is a trade name of SMARTFLOW PAYMENTS LIMITED.

SMARTFLOW PAYMENTS LIMITED is registered in England and Wales (Company number 11070048).

Gaming

It’s time to speed up AI: Slotegrator presented new exciting solutions at iGB L!ve 2023

Published

10 months ago

July 25, 2023

Hunor Pal

A new era in the iGaming industry has begun: AI-powered solutions are now becoming affordable. Slotegrator presented the new AI-powered capabilities of its turnkey online casino platform at iGB L!ve 2023 in Amsterdam.

Every year, Slotegrator presents its newest innovations at iGB L!ve. This year, the company added several new features to its turnkey online casino platform, basing the additions on the results of internal customer research and global market analysis.

Upcoming trends are a constant source of speculation in the iGaming industry. As an industry trendsetter itself, Slotegrator knows what to bet on; last year, the company predicted rapid AI growth, and these capabilities have already been integrated into the company’s solutions.

The upgrades include:

The business intelligence (BI) module has become an Artificial BI module. Now it not only helps operators track the analytical data they need to make strategic decisions, but allows them to compare their project with others that operate in the same market. It’s an effective tool for analyzing competitors’ activities and to improve the entire business strategy.
ChatGPT was integrated to offer operators 24/7 business consultation. While the strategy will ultimately be up to the casino operator, ChatGPT’s capacity to offer advice can prove invaluable.
Fraud Detection (for collecting Big Data to reduce risk) with AI makes it easy for casino operators to set the parameters of what constitutes potentially fraudulent behavior and then segment players accordingly and take action when necessary.

Also, Slotegrator integrated a multiplayer chat function – an effective retention tool that emphasizes the value of live communication and offers opportunities for networking and creating player communities. The solution will see the addition of AI capabilities as well.

“This is just the first set of innovations. We are planning to use AI to boost our platform even further. The industry standards are changing, so the market can’t afford to use old tools now. Our participation in iGB L!ve 2023 demonstrated this completely,” says Dmytro Taran, COO at Slotegrator.

Uncategorized

LeoVegas Group granted three licenses to offer gaming software in Sweden

Published

11 months ago

June 5, 2023

Gaspar Incze

Reading Time: 2 minutes

LeoVegas Group has been granted three five-year licenses by the Swedish Gambling Authority—known as “B2B licenses”— to develop and offer gaming software in Sweden. These licenses, effective from 1 July 2023, have been granted to the Group’s game studio Blue Guru Games and two platforms. Licenses are a prerequisite for providing software to licensed operators and an important step to prevent unlicensed gaming companies, consequently strengthening channelisation in the Swedish gaming market.

Since its inception, LeoVegas Group has experienced rapid growth, evolving from an operator into an integral player within the igaming industry’s value chain via game and platform development. Effective from July 1, 2023, under the Swedish Gambling Act, companies involved in the manufacture, provision, installation, or modification of game software utilised in online gaming are required to possess a license.

LeoVegas Group has now been granted three five-year licenses—referred to as “B2B licenses”—by the Swedish Gambling Authority. These licenses have been conferred upon the Group’s game studio Blue Guru Games, as well as the Group’s two platforms (PAM).

Gustaf Hagman, CEO of LeoVegas Group, said “We welcome the introduction of B2B licenses, a decisive step towards mitigating the impact of key gaming software being simultaneously provided to licensed operators and unlicensed operators targeting Swedish players. With the new regulations in force, it is now critical that authorities focus on those suppliers deliberately undermining the Swedish licensing system by facilitating unlicensed gaming“.

The 2019 initiation of Swedish gaming licenses marked a significant reform to regulate and supervise gaming companies operating in Sweden. This reform fortified regulations pertaining to marketing and consumer protection, while also ensuring substantial gambling tax revenues. The success of the B2B licensing system heavily depends on the Swedish Gambling Authority’s capacity to restrict key gaming software intended for licensed Swedish companies from simultaneously being used by unlicensed operators seeking to attract Swedish players.

On 1 May, LeoVegas Group announced its intentions to acquire game developer Push Gaming, which is also licensed by the Swedish Gambling Authority and holds two B2B licenses. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2023.