How much regulation is enough? - Euroslot - the independent voice of the amusement and gambling industry

How much regulation is enough?

Published: 15 November, 2011

There’s one thing that an economic slowdown doesn’t seem to slow down, and that’s regulatory change. Across the world we see the gaming and amusements sectors continuing to adapt to new rules, often brought about by new technologies such as e-gaming and VLTs; and despite a few territories, notably Russia, heading in the direction of prohibition, the general trend is toward liberalisation.

This month, for example, we report on a move by the British government to relax the requirements for entertainment licensing in venues such as pubs, which (assuming the current consultation process does indeed lead to legislation) could be a welcome boost for jukebox operators and also bring about more film shows in noncinema locations.

Across the Irish Sea, meanwhile, laws are finally being drafted to introduce a real casino sector there, replacing the strange twilight world of semi-casinos that exists at the moment. Regulation won’t, and shouldn’t, disappear entirely, for this is a sector that unregulated would present too many opportunities for unscrupulous operators to cheat players, quite apart from issues of problem and under-age gambling. But there should be only the level of regulation that is sufficient to counter those risks, and the lighter-touch approach now being adopted by many governments is a boon for everybody in this business.

Barnaby Page, editor

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