Regulation round-up 20 September 2016
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (14 September to 20 September 2016)
Gambling Commission names dental regulator as new chair
Bill Moyes replaces Philip Graf following the end of his five-year tenure
Bill Moyes has been hired to replace Philip Graf as the new chair of Great Britain’s Gambling Commission, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has announced.
Moyes, who starts his five-year term next month, currently serves as chair of the General Dental Council, regulator for the UK’s dental professionals.
He was previously director general and executive director of British Retail Consortium, and has held non-executive directorships with the Legal Services Board, the Priory Hospital Group and the Office of Fair Trading.
His earlier career was in government and the banking industry, and his pro bono roles include the chairmanship of the board of directors of St Mary’s Music School, Edinburgh.
“[Moyes] has a wealth of experience across the public, private and voluntary sectors, which will serve him well at the Gambling Commission,” Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Karen Bradley, said.
ASA bans “misleading” Coral free bet ad
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned an email promotion run by Coral due to a “misleading” free bet deal targeting new customers sent out by the operator in error.
Coral mistakenly sent out an email promotion prior to the Grand National offering new customers a £20 free bet once they had placed a sports bet of £5, but the offer was not valid.
Coral said the automatic email had been sent out incorrectly due to an “oversight” by its third-party email provider, but added the complainant would not have been able to take advantage of the offer.
However, the ASA ruled the ad as “misleading” and would have caused “unnecessary disappointment”, adding Coral had “not dealt fairly” with the complainant.
The ASA told the ad must not appear in its current form, and warned the firm not to circulate outdated promotions and deal with players “fairly”.
Seven days in regulation:
Pennsylvania most likely state to regulate next
Pennsylvania is considered the favourite to be the next US state to introduce real money gaming, EGR understands.
The state approved a budget for 2017 back in July which included a $100m tax contribution from gambling, with state officials confirming that both online poker and online casino were being counted on to provide revenue.
A vote to legalise the activities is expected early next year, with a source from inside the legislature telling EGR: “I tend to think we can get the votes in 2017, primarily because the legislature has already earmarked that $100m, most of which could be raised almost instantly from licensing fees.”
A consultant working with gaming companies in the state told EGR his clients are “90% sure the egaming aspect of the bills would get passed”, while one US-facing gaming provider confirmed it was gearing up operations as if Pennsylvania were going online in 2017.
Gambling Commission charges YouTubers with promoting skins betting
The Gambling Commission has brought charges against two individuals for promoting an online gambling site that uses FIFA’s in-game coins.
The regulator is charging Craig Douglas and Dylan Rigby with “promoting a lottery and advertising unlawful gambling.”
The case is part of the Commission’s recent pledge to clamp down on eSports and skins betting.