55% of Swedish slot players think ‘Bonus Buy’ games should be banned

Exclusive Swedish polling conducted by Play’n GO today also reveals overwhelming general public support for the prohibition of Bonus Buy slot games.

Press release.- Play’n GO has today revealed exclusive polling conducted in Sweden that shows overwhelming support for the prohibition of the controversial slot mechanic featured in ‘Bonus Buy’ games. 

The results of a nationally representative survey in Sweden are stark:  

• Seven out of ten members of the general Swedish public (69 per cent) support changing the regulation to ban ‘Bonus Buy’ games 
• Incredibly, more than half of Swedish slot players (55 per cent) want the game type prohibited too 

Among the respondents who want to see the controversial slot game banned, two-thirds of the public (66 per cent), and more than half of slot players in Sweden (52 per cent), believe ‘Bonus Buy’ games exploit vulnerable gamblers. 

Further, nearly two-thirds of slot players themselves (63 per cent) think that ‘Bonus Buy’ games result in higher losses for players. 

So called ‘Bonus Buy’ games allow players to buy directly into the bonus or free spins round of a slot game, in many cases for hundreds of times more than their initial stake for a single spin.  

The controversial game type is banned by some of the world’s leading regulators including KSA of the Netherlands and the UK Gambling Commission, who reiterated their stance in a reminder to all online casino operators back in January 2020 that stated ‘Gambling products must not actively encourage customers to increase their stake or increase the amount they have decided to gamble.’   

The findings by Play’n GO also reveal today that Swedish slot players overwhelming think that: 

• changing the regulation to align with the UK and the Netherlands regarding ‘Bonus Buy’ games is the ‘responsible thing to do’ (61 per cent) 
• a change in the regulation shows that ‘the Swedish government are taking gambling issues seriously (63 per cent) 
• they would be proud if the gambling regulator prohibited ‘Bonus Buy’ games (53 per cent) 

In December, the Swedish gambling regulator Spelinspektionen reported that Spelpaus, the centralised national self-exclusion system, surpassed 100,000 registered users for the first time.  

Commenting on the overwhelming support in Sweden for the prohibition of ‘Bonus Buy’ slot games, Johan Törnqvist, CEO and co-founder of Play’n GO, said: “Play’n GO has been a consistent and vocal advocate for a sustainable, regulated, and thriving gaming industry that is based around an ‘entertainment-first’ mindset for many years.  

“I pledged as far back as 2021 that Play’n GO would never make a Bonus Buy game – a decision that has cost us hundreds of millions of Swedish Krona – but I stand by that decision. Bonus buy games are harmful to players, and to the long-term health and sustainability of the entire industry, and they should be excluded from the regulated Swedish market.” 

Over half of the Swedish public (51 per cent) described game suppliers who have decided not to make ‘Bonus Buy’ games as ‘responsible’, with more than a quarter choosing ‘ethical’ or ‘brave’. 

The exclusive research was conducted among people in Sweden who reported that they played slots at least once per month.