White Paper Update
The United Kingdom Gambling Commission is banning all licensed operators from offering multi-product promotions as part of an update to the latest Gaming White Paper. The Commission has also introduced a handful of other new rules, including a limit on wagering requirements.
These new rules are some of the first major updates to come following the 2023 Gaming White Paper. This came at the end of a generational review of the UK Gambling Commission. The White Paper was met with a mixed response, with some elements receiving praise from the industry, and others coming under scrutiny.
This latest update will ban any sort of cross-vertical promotions from operators. In effect, this means operators will not be able to promote anything that gets a player to jump from one part of their site, such as the sportsbook, to another like the casino.
Potentially Harmful
The Commission has noted that these kinds of promotions bring a lot of potential harm to players. The belief is that they often have complex terms & conditions, and that some of the more difficult requirements could confuse customers and result in them needlessly losing funds.
The Commission also believes that, in almost all cases, players are at much greater risk when they gamble on more than one vertical and that operators should not prompt customers to switch between the two.
Wagering Requirement Cap
Bans on cross-sell promotions were not the only change implemented by the Commission. It has also capped wagering requirements at 10x. Wagering requirements dictate the number of times a customer has to re-stake winnings or bonus funds before they can claim them.
The Commission believes that by capping wagering requirements, it will be able to reduce harm and improve transparency. It also noted that it will make bonuses easy to understand and work through for customers.
