13 minute read
Casino
from SBC Leaders Issue 19
by SBC Global
METAVERSE: A PATHWAY TO A NEW GAMBLING SCENE?
THE METAVERSE. A massively scaled and interoperable network of real-time rendered 3D virtual worlds which can be experienced synchronously and persistently by an effectively unlimited number of users. Enough to send the imagination into overdrive! But what are the implications for a gaming sector that has its roots very much in the real world?
BY JAMES ROSS
To paraphrase Marvel’s Doctor Strange - the metaverse is a concept that we know frighteningly little about.
To put it as plainly and simply as possible, this is a virtual reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users. But as the world is well aware, nothing is as straightforward as it seems.
Question marks still remain on how, or if, the metaverse will work in numerous sectors; online gambling is no exception to this. But one person who is optimistic about its potential is Mark Robson, CEO at Eminence Holdings, who believes that online gambling “will work better in the metaverse”.
Robson noted that through the metaverse, things such as onboarding, payments, and locating favourite slots will be made much easier. Moreover, the CEO stated that sportsbooks will become “much more exciting”.
He continued: “Traditional sports betting can already be done when you’re at the venue of the event taking place, but the metaverse will blur the lines between real life and cyberspace through virtual and augmented reality.
“From a business perspective, there will be far more opportunities to crosspromote, target your advertising and create a better winning feeling and more excitement for customers.”
Another optimist regarding the metaverse was Ben McDonagh, CEO and Co-Founder of Green Jade Games, who remarked that by being “less Black Mirror and more hopeful”, this
Mark Robson, CEO at Eminence Holdings
Ben McDonagh, CEO and Co-Founder of Green Jade Games
Vladimir Malakchi, Evoplay’s CCO
new reality can become the “perfect destination for a myriad of consumers” with a heightened emphasis on those with limited physical abilities or those who are introverts.
“We can focus on those with limited physical abilities that can’t take the walk they used to, or ever could, to a casino where they take pleasure in the whoops and hollas of a live gambling scene,” McDonagh explained.
“We can focus on those that are introverted and can hide behind a digital persona that allows them to be ‘who they dream of being’ or just fancy playing the role (think Aech from Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One) but more than that, we can open the world to a community that want to spend time together, even if it's just to people (avatar) watch and let the day pass by and where colour, creed and perceived worth are values left in an unjust IRL world.”
Whilst the possibilities are endless for the metaverse, there is a mouth watering prospect for operators to create a social platform for players from all corners of the globe to play and interact. But with this comes regulatory and social challenges.
Will there need to be meta regulations, as we see with the online and land-based sectors? Will there be campaigns popping up for responsible meta gambling?
Evoplay’s CCO, Vladimir Malakchi,
believes that since meta gambling is a fusion of both offline and online, it will bring together two common frameworks that mix both experiences resulting in existing core legal foundations being in place, but also adapted in light of further developments.
Malakchi also went on to stress: “It’s important that we focus on protecting those working and playing in the metaverse, much like we would for land-based or online initiatives.”
Suren Khachatryan, Technamin’s
Founder and CEO, offered a more compelling answer by claiming the metaverse will definitely need to enforce responsible gaming policies just as strictly as the sector does in its online vertical, stressing that “at the end of the day, people are people”.
He noted: “Whether in physical locations or in a virtual reality, standards must be met in order to ensure that players enjoy their time in total safety. The advancements we have made in online gaming allow us to follow responsible gaming regulations in a less rigid manner through customising the experience for the player.
“The same can be done in the metaverse, in an even more exciting way. The more customisable the games and the environment, the safer everything will be for the player.”
Robson also noted that whilst the metaverse will be all-encompassing,
THE METAVERSE WILL BLUR THE LINES BETWEEN IN REAL LIFE AND CYBERSPACE THROUGH VIRTUAL AND AUGMENTED REALITY IT’S IMPORTANT THAT WE FOCUS ON PROTECTING THOSE WORKING AND PLAYING IN THE METAVERSE
with that comes “the opportunity for abuse from both the consumer and some operators”.
The CEO of Eminence Holdings stated: “Some virtual worlds will allow each and every individual onto their site, with exposure to ads and links to adult content, irrespective of age restrictions or geography. This is why it is imperative that there are strict regulations placed on each world and each casino in these worlds.
“In theory, this could be similar to the current procedure for online casinos whereby ID is verified, and IP checks/geo-filtering is used. I do think there will need to be some changes regarding AML procedures and responsible gaming guidelines to factor in the metaverse.”
If meta gambling becomes the new normal for the industry over the next decade, could we see it attempt to replicate its land-based vertical?
This is a notion which was shut down by Robin Reed, CEO at HappyHour, who insisted that it was a “narrowminded mistake”, stating that experiences or content built for one platform/environment to another can not be translated.
“We need to build completely new experiences, however keeping the very core emotional and material values that are making gambling appealing to people, in mind,”
Reed expressed. “When walking into a classical casino you escape a mundane everyday life and you enter another world. In the metaverse you can do this to a level that is almost unimaginable.
“I expect immersiveness on steroids, unprecedented spontaneity and extraordinary stimulation of the senses, all wrapping the product which is perhaps the strongest and most compelling entertainment there is: gambling.”
Delving deeper into the risks associated with the Metaverse,
EvenBet CEO Dmitry Starostenkov
highlighted that several risks may arise from using a third-party platform for hosting and promoting games.
These include limited access to the user database, being dependent on the frequently changing platform policies and paying commissions that can sometimes be “enormously high”.
He added: “From the overall industry perspective, a new entertainment giant may impose a disturbing threat to independent operators. Many new and casual players may prefer a trusted, well known platform that they are already using for everyday social activities.”
McDonagh noted that the range of risks is “vast” but not necessarily too far away from the issues that the industry currently deals with.
“The mechanism of reward in online casino is already a hot topic for regulation but what is different in meta is suddenly there are other items of
Suren Khachatryan, Technamin’s Founder and CEO Robin Reed, CEO at HappyHour
Alex Kornilov, Betegy CEO Dmitry Starostenkov, EvenBet CEO
value that you can hope to acquire such as NFTs - think jackpot in a slot being an NFT rather than a cash-money value,” he added.
“I’ve already covered immersed time and now we can get really deep into how one derives meaning in life, because who’s to say that living in a simulation isn’t the ultimate goal?
“Humans are believed to be the only ones who can imagine and dream in the way that we can, so what better utilisation of our superior brain power than to get lost in a living fantasy?”
Offering a more conscious approach, Robson noted that in terms of gambling, the metaverse will bring a “more thrilling and sensory experience to the customer” with greater highs potentially leading to greater lows, longer engagement hours and, potentially, problems associated with this.
He added: "We can't, and won't, ignore this possibility. So we need to ensure we do everything in our power as an industry to leverage technology to be there for our customers and promote responsible gaming. “
On the contrary, Betegy’s CEO Alex Kornilov emphasised his confidence that the metaverse will work but stressed there is no way to define its potential as “no one knows how far this technology can go or the appetite for mainstream adoption”.
He concluded: “In principle, you’ll have two types of companies that set out in this space. The pioneers/ early adopters who will learn from trial and error and create the first viable working products. You’ll then have the larger companies which will then acquire the smaller, more agile winners who will have learned from this process. This is the same with any new tech.
“I’m hugely confident the metaverse will work – there’s going to be surging demand across both VR and online casino in the years to come – get it right, and you’ll be onto a winner. But again, as this industry doesn’t exist yet, I can’t say how big those winnings would be!” •
CALLING THE INDUSTRY TO ACCOUNT ON SLOT DESIGN AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
BETSSON’S PAUL MALT has been around the game design business long enough to understand that there are crystal clear lines to be drawn when it comes to good taste, decency and social responsibility. Cross them at your peril!
BY CHRIS MURPHY
When does a slot title go too far in terms of pushing the boundaries of social responsibility and good taste and decency? The question is increasingly relevant as game developers compete to deliver compelling game content that can bestride the visceral and the virtuous, while avoiding the baleful gaze of industry regulators.
Offering his view on that ‘big ask’ was Paul Malt, Head of Games at online gaming firm Betsson Group. Looking at responsibility for slot design and how the sector currently handles social responsibility, he chose to reference the three main tenets of the Gambling Act 2005 as a starting point.
“There are three main objectives
which support the whole basis of gambling regulation, and slot game design needs to consider them all. These objectives are that crime should be kept out of gambling, it should be conducted in a fair and open way and children and
other vulnerable persons should be protected from harm or exploitation from gambling.”
He warned: “Slot designs that fall outside of these responsibility parameters are less likely to see wide area release to the end user. This is because operators, and especially those targeting regulated markets, understand that they are ultimately responsible for protecting players and simply will not stock games in their lobbies that do not meet the requirements set out under the licence or licences they hold.
“This is why it is so important for developers to understand the three main objectives that underpin gambling regulation and design and develop content within these boundaries.”
Malt also has some clear views as to the key requirements that slot developers need to account for when factoring in social responsibility at the design stage. He’s in no doubt, for example, that playing slots is very much a ‘grown up’ pastime.
“Playing slots and gambling in general is fundamentally an activity for adults,” he advised. “In addition, the vast majority of operators are live across multiple markets and have many different player demographics and segments to engage with. This means that game providers are pretty much free to develop the content they want, so long as it is aimed at adults and will appeal to the players the operator is targeting.
“Of course, operators will have to consider the responsible gambling measures required under the licences they hold as well as their own safe gaming policies when it comes to deciding on the content they stock, so developers must also be aware of this when designing and building their slots.”
But for some, that grown up approach to slot entertainment is veering a little too close to the rubicon, prompting the inevitable question: how much is too much when it comes to designing slot titles? When does an adult theme go beyond the realms of good taste?
Malt believes that a line has already been transgressed, and more than once. He commented: “In my opinion, the ‘too much’ boundary has been crossed on many occasions, especially when it comes to the sexualisation of themes and characters within slot games. However, as I mentioned above, so long as developers are designing games for adult audiences
then it is down to the specific operator if they wish to stock games based on such themes or not.”
While Malt is keen to expound the virtues of the Gambling Act’s aforementioned three main tenets, and the industry’s duty to adhere to them, he also emphasised the need for balance and some real world context.
He explained: “It’s worth mentioning studies from the video game sector, and in particular the impact violent games have on crime. The studies have generally not supported the existence of causal links, while researchers have also found no links between violent video gameplay and anxiety, depression, somatic symptoms or ADHD.
“This research needs to be considered in the real money gaming sector especially when you take into account the additional levels of protection provided to consumers through minimum age requirements, KYC and the ability to self-exclude. So for balance, I think that whether a game is ‘too much’ needs to be looked at on an individual basis and with these extra levels of protection in mind, too.”
In terms of who is ultimately responsible for what is socially acceptable within the realms of slot design, Malt offered an interesting perspective along the lines that while game designers will always push the envelope, it’s the operator that plays the role of arbiter.
“Ultimately, the operator has a sense of responsibility and specific guidelines to adhere to, so will always be the one to make the final call on whether to release a game or not,” he said. “No outside pressure from the game developer should influence this as ultimately it is the operator’s licence, and reputation, that is on the line.”
Reinforcing the point, he added: “As with film and video gaming, multiple adult genres are with us and are likely to stay. Responsibility sits with operators and how or if they make this content visible to the end user.”
It looks inevitable, however, that the industry will turn to good oldfashioned numbers to shine a guiding light on the parameters of decency and social responsibility.
Malt concluded: “The use of data and analytics can help gain insight into customers and their individual preferences, and then the use of game recommendation engines can optimise lobbies for each player to provide a better, more socially responsible experience. This combination of data and analytics provides operators with the insight they need to make better, more informed decisions and improve responsibility.” •
