New Swedish regulations could do ‘more harm than good’, according to EGBA
The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) is concerned the new temporary restrictions on online gaming in Sweden will fail to protect players.
Instead, the European industry body warns the restrictions could do more harm to consumer protection than provide help to those who need it the most.
This response comes after Sweden’s social security minister Ardalan Shekarabi proposed a number of measures to limit problems that might occur from online gambling during lockdown.
Restrictions include a mandatory weekly deposit of SEK 5,000 ($497), along with a SEK 100 cap on bonus offers and set time limits on players’ online casino activities.
While EGBA said it strongly supports measures aimed to protect players, these proposed restrictions could encourage customers to gamble on the unregulated market, having the opposite effect.
EGBA also questioned the effectiveness of the measures to protect consumers during the coronavirus, considering they would take place from June 1 until the end of the year.
Secretary General, Maarten Haijer, said: “In Sweden, gambling advertising spending is down and we haven’t seen evidence that average customer spend is up.
“Even so, there is no compelling evidence that arbitrary restrictions on customer spend have a positive effect on safe gambling.”
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