Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright has hit back at bookmakers who have supposedly undermined the restraints imposed on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs), describing the actions as “disgraceful” in a recent Parliamentary session. The new restrictions on the terminals came into play on 1 April. Earlier in the month, however, The Guardian accused Paddy Power and Betfred of trying to circumvent …
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In a bid to offset any potential revenue losses incurred through the Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) ruling, William Hill has requested that its landlords reduce its rents by 50 per cent. As reported by Property Week, an open letter was issued to 2,000 landlords across the country at the beginning of the month requesting the rent cuts, effective immediately. …
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A report released by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) looking into ‘Gambling participation in 2018: behaviour, awareness and attitudes’ has found that the number of people who have participated in gambling has increased since December 2017. The survey, carried out by telephone and online by independent market research company Populus, found that 46 per cent of respondents had participated in …
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Arena Racecourse Company (ARC) has responded to threats of further boycotts from trainers over the cuts to prize-money contributions, by pointing out that the racing group will not be changing its position. The group’s CEO, Martin Cruddace, was on hand at Lingfield this Saturday to observe the Betway Winter Derby card. The meeting had been reduced from seven to five …
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Mark Johnston, a leading horse trainer, has blasted the Arena Racing Company’s (Arc) contribution to the prize-money as the racing group prepares to offset the government cuts to FOBT stakes. Arc announced in December 2018 that it “simply cannot continue” to maintain its current contributions to the prize-money fund, and would be issuing a reduction to its contribution by £3m. …
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The Gambling Commission is inviting members of the public, gambling businesses and other stakeholders to provide their views on two key issues as part of its work to prevent gambling-related harms. The Commission is requesting views and data on the issue of gambling online with credit cards and, separately, on improving player control measures on all Category B gaming machines, …
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Ahead of the implementation of the £2 maximum stakes for Fixed Odds Betting Terminals, UK bookmakers have opted to trial the new stake limit to assess the impact it will have on the industry. Betting shops in Birmingham are testing out the new stake limit ahead of the legislative change on 1 April, following the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) …
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With the aim of diversifying its business portfolio, Star Sports launched its new recruitment contingent Star Recruitment back in January with the aim of providing tailored staffing solutions to the global gambling industry. SBC caught up with Simon Banks, a sector resourcing and talent development veteran, who is heading up the new vertical as its Chief Executive Officer. We asked …
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Industry charity GambleAware has reaffirmed its support of the nationwide self-exclusion scheme GamStop amid reports that the scheme had been breached by problem gamblers. Entering 2019, the betting industry got off to a rocky start after BBC five live reports revealed that gamblers registered with the self-exclusion scheme were able to alter details provided at registration, allowing the continuation of …
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In a move to counter the impact of cuts to Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) stakes, Ladbrokes and Coral have announced that they will be extending their best-odds guaranteed offer across all over-the-counter bets. Customers of both operators, which act as one under the umbrella of GVC Holdings, will be able to take advantage of the offer from 8 am …
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