In recent days, news surrounding the UK Gambling Commission has been quite rife. That’s because it was recently announced, that following a review of the gambling industry, changes were to be made.
And these changes had to be made to ensure that fair gaming and safe environments were better equipped. It was said that stricter regulations were to be brought in, in order to better regulate the industry within the UK. And now, some updates to regulations have been brought into effect.

Naturally, both land-based and online casinos and sports betting platforms have been somewhat sceptical about changes. After all, updates could potentially have a negative effect on them. As gamers, this could also affect us.

Although, the chances are, that if you play at a responsible casino such as Virgin Games, you won’t suffer much impact. Generally speaking, you will still be able to go about playing your favourite games and placing wagers as normal. But, let’s find out exactly what the recent updates are.

The Advertisement Sector Takes a Hit

Up until now, advertising of casino gaming has had little restrictions on the type of imagery that can be used. However, following the recent review of the industry, the UK Gambling Commission has instructed online casinos to remove any material that may appeal to youths. Of course, 18 is the legal gambling age in the United Kingdom. And some advertisements have incorporated cartoons and popular imagery that could potentially attract children and minors.

The prime target of this alteration is the use of characters that younger people would recognise. So, this means characters from nursery rhymes or fairytales. As you may know, some of the world’s biggest game developers have created games about such characters. Take a look at Netent’s Fairytale Legends: Red Riding Hood or Three Little Pigs from Playtech. Any advertisements relating to these and other such games need to be removed from view. This is to crack down on the number of minors who are potentially tempted to play casino games as these.

And then there’s the affiliation sector. It’s not difficult to find online comparison and review websites when it comes to casino platforms. And the UK Gambling Commission has stated that these particular sites need to do more to provide appropriate warnings to potential players. Additionally, links to gambling resources need to be included on the websites, including those that offer help to people addicted to gambling. Of course, this is not something that the Commission is able to directly influence. However, online platforms that accept traffic from such affiliates are in danger of being fined.

The Land-Based Problem

The new updates also relate to the physical casino establishments in the United Kingdom. The Gambling Commission is taking aim at the casinos that host fixed odds betting terminals. A reduction in the maximum stakes that you can place at these terminals is very likely to come into effect soon. This currently stands at ￡100 per round, but with the introduction of a law draft relating to this, it could be dramatically reduced in due course. The extent of such is currently awaiting discussion in Parliament.

Some are even proposing that the maximum bet level is reduced down to ￡2. And of course, this would enforce quite a strong impact on these establishments that house such terminals. The effect stands to dramatically reduce profits from them. However, these moves by the Commission are taking place to reduce the risk of gambling addiction, especially when it comes to youths in the country.