According to Grainne Hurst, Director of Corporate Affairs at Entain, the key to reducing problem gambling is to provide ‘innovative and effective player protection systems that are personalised for our customers’.
Player protection and responsible gambling have become key objectives of all betting operators, and for Hurst, the best way to achieve this is through a personalised approach.
Speaking to Martin Lycka in the latest episode of the Safe Bet Show, Hurst discussed one of Entain’s major initiatives this year – the launch of its Advance Responsibility and Care programme.
Emphasising the importance of a personalised approach to responsible gaming, Hurst explained: “Rather than a blanket approach to regulation and player protection, what we believe is the best way to approach it is actually tracking our customers’ behaviour to see if they’re playing problematically.
“We do that through a mixture of algorithms, behavioural analytics and academic expertise to actually track what customers are doing in real-time, and when we see that they might be spending late at night or are chasing their losses or using various deposit methods, we can intervene.”
For Hurst and Entain, the main objective of responsible gambling policy is to ‘reduce the levels of problem gambling’ through technological solutions that provide ‘innovative and effective player protection systems that are personalised for our customers’.
Detailing the development of the ARC system, Hurst explained how the process was informed by an evidence-based approach which has seen Entain collaborate with leading academics such as Professor Mark Griffiths of the Harvard Medical School, as well as consultancy firm EPIC Risk Management.
By leveraging this input and experience, the Director explained, Entain has been able to establish the ‘right behavioural markers’ to look for in customers, better informing the approach taken to those who may potentially need help.
By taking this personalised approach, Entain is working to ensure that only customers who are at risk of gambling-related harm are affected, whilst the majority who simply enjoy a bet are free to pursue their pastimes.
Hurst added: “We’re really excited about the possibilities because we know that each of our customers have different playing preferences, habits, games that they like – therefore their experience with us is all personalised and we think that aren’t their play protection systems should be personalised.
“Again, this goes back to my point – we have a safety net in place through ARC for the small minority of customers that need it, but we don’t penalise the majority of those that enjoy our products safely and securely on a day to day basis.”
