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Upsets ahead for UK online gambling

Online gambling in the UK is set for another round of industry consolidation following the Culture Secretary’s interest in current advertising controls and offshore gambling industry regulations.

UK’s Gambling Act 2005 legislation currently allows overseas gambling sites to advertise on television. Overseas gambling sites need to show that they are legal operations in the country where they are registered. They are then allowed to advertise in the UK, so that UK customers can use their online poker rooms. Public advocates are worried this has led to an increase in children’s gambling, as overseas providers may be less stringent with checking player identification papers during the registration process. They reported to UK media recently that the country has a million children “addicted to gambling”.

While there are strict regulations in place for UK gambling operators in order to ensure children are prevented from playing highly addictive games, UK operators account for less than a quarter of the market. The rest of the online gambling operators advertising in the UK are operated from overseas. Their business practices are not overseen by the nation’s online gambling regulator, a key worry for the Government’s Gambling Commission.

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Legislative changes have been mooted that would require any online gambling operator to register and comply to UK standards, and, of course, pay local taxes and charges. Italy and France recently introduced similar laws partly in order to get a tax cut from internet gambling profits and other European nations like Spain and Greece are drawing up the fine print now for their own laws.

Legislative changes may also bring in new requirements that prohibit use of credit cards to place bets.

It is expected that some international gaming operators may change their market interests or disappear altogether. Some of the bigger and reputable industry players are looking forward to the tighter controls, as it will allow them to continue operating in a more competitively fair marketplace. Sites like Poker 888 poker are members of the United Nations Global Compact in order to show their corporate responsibility in the online gaming industry.