Balancing compliance with regulation and using new technology to develop their products is a challenge facing operators, according to a Worldpay executive.
Commercial Development VP of Gambling, Global Enterprise and eCommerce at Worldpay, which is part of FIS’ Merchant Solutions Division, Steffan Jones told Gambling Insider complying with ever-changing regulation is taking up a lot of development for operators, which could impact product enhancement.
Jones said: "With more country regulation and licenses coming in, that becomes a real challenge for operators in the markets they want to be in, and to comply with those local licenses, framework and regimes.
"From a regulation point of view and in terms of licensing and additionally around player safety, it’s taking up a lot of development for operators, which has made product enhancement a little harder.
"Obviously you want to comply with those local licenses, but it will be interesting to watch what that does for innovation."
Jones went on to say tougher regulation in Europe could force operators to explore alternative markets.
He said: "We’re focused on supporting operators, including those looking to expand their global footprint, which is a bit harder within Europe at the moment, considering the cost of player acquisition and complying with all the regulation.
"This means operators are looking for new markets, but Worldpay has got the infrastructure to help with that.
"We’re currently live in the US by a state-by-state basis, which we’re really excited about, and if operators want to expand to Australia, or new markets in South America as regulations come to pass there, we can help with that."
According to Jones, while new technology is an exciting prospect, operators being able to offer it while complying with ongoing regulation is a real challenge.
He added: "While there’s a huge desire for both us and the operators to offer some really exciting new technology to players, at the same time they’ve got to comply with industry regulations, so it’s how you get that and how they fit within everyone’s busy roadmap, which is a real challenge we have."
