Recap: ICE London 2020

2020’s ICE London has, in many ways, far exceeded previous years’ - mostly because the industry knowledge and understanding around responsible gambling has increased, but also because we’re no longer discussing the WHY, but the HOW, of RG measures and implementation.

This year, I’ve heard numerous operators, regulators, and even people working with consumer protection, say that the industry is willing to invest in RG, but that there’s not really a consensus on what works, nor enough research to support whether RG interventions are actually of any benefit.

Perhaps I’m sticking my neck out by saying this, but I don’t really see where that idea is coming from.

Europe, and especially Scandinavia and the UK, have been studying problem gambling and responsible gambling measures for a long time, and along with other countries, such as Canada, we have a well of information and suitable tools and interventions to start working with - today.

The real problem, to me, is that the industry is well aware of the tools available, but hesitant (or scared) to actually use them, because there might be some uncomfortable choices and discussions that would have to follow. It’s easy to point towards lacking and/or uncertain research, or that there isn’t a tool that is ‘just right’ - but that, to me, seems a lot like a smoke screen.

Now, Sustainable Interaction have been in the RG industry for 20 years and have been working internationally with universities, researchers, psychologists, experts on problem gambling, and the gambling industry itself to gather a knowledge base you definitely can’t describe as ‘lacking’. Perhaps our problem is that we’re bad at talking about our work - but it’s still here, speaking for itself.

If you’re ready to start doing the real work, we’re happy to help!

Regards,
Johan Brandsten
CEO