Top stories around our network this week
Promotion of responsible gambling should, obviously, be a 365-day-a-year goal in the industry covered by , but September is given special designation by the American Gaming Association as Responsible Gaming Education Month.
Why September? Maybe because football is the most popular sport for wagering and bettors with pent-up demand might have a tendency to overindulge without some helpful messaging. Or maybe it’s that it dovetails nicely with September also being Pain Awareness Month, considering every bettor has been stung trying to overcome a bookmaker’s vig.
Whatever the reason, the past week has provided a lot of healthy discussion about the dangers of excessive gambling and the industry’s role in helping keep things under control. One webinar we covered focused on precisely that point: the things operators can and should do to enhance player protection. A separate panel discussion stressed it’s not just operators but regulators who can do a better job of collaborating on best practices to promote responsible gambling. One improvement key stakeholders agree is needed is promotion of 1-800-GAMBLER as a national helpline for problem gamblers, rather than the existing patchwork system of state phone lines.
The personal stories of those addicted to gambling are always devastating — but important to hear — and we’ve gotten those this week from individuals connected to EPIC Risk Management or participating in a discussion on the topic arranged by New York state Sen. Joseph Addabbo, a leading proponent of legalized gambling. Certain quirks about the system to help problem gamblers have also been examined, such as how individuals who have self-excluded from iGaming can find to their unhappy surprise — and public embarrassment — that a brick-and-mortar casino might boot them off the property.
The latter story dealt with Pennsylvania’s system of multiple self-exclusion lists. In Colorado, meanwhile, there’s news that the state's Department of Revenue will take over handling of the self-exclusion list from the Problem Gambling Coalition of Colorado. Consumers concerned about their habits can sign up voluntarily to be excluded from gambling at casinos or betting on sports online for periods of one, three, or five years. Colorado is one state that has stepped up government efforts to prevent problem gambling, increasing funding from the former $130,000 per year to'$3 million in May 2022 for programs.
At and our sister sites, we produce a great volume of stories that promote healthy aspects of sports betting and the broader gambling industry, with entertainment in mind. We don’t shirk responsibility, however, to also highlight issues surrounding how things can go wrong for a minority of individuals. We’ll continue covering all sides, as stories linked below from the past week show. And for additional gaming industry news, be sure to check out , including its weekly Double Down column and podcast.
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