ATG CEO Hasse Lord Skarplöth blasts bonuses as “embarrassing”
ATG’s CEO criticises gaming industry practices for driving gambling addiction.
Sweden. Hasse Lord Skarplöth, the CEO of the Swedish horse racing betting operator ATG, has blasted the gaming industry’s use of bonuses, claiming that they drive gambling addiction. He put his support behind the country’s current restrictions on the practice.
Sweden has strict rules on bonuses, which are only available on sign-up, with operators allowed to offer a single bonus of up to SEK100. However, the Moderata Party is considering proposals to relax those rules to help companies retain customers, which it says would boost consumer protections.
Almost all gambling operators will agree with that proposal, but not the state-controlled ATG. Writing in a blog on the ATG website, Skarplöth said that bonuses drive gambling addiction and should also be considered “a bad rating” on a product.
He explained: “It’s a bit embarrassing that a product like a game, which is supposed to be a fun experience and nice relaxation is marketed as if it were a surplus stock of expired canned goods. Does the industry really not have more confidence in the content of its offering?”
He added: “For the vulnerable player, a bonus offer, however mundane it may seem, can contribute to problem development and a relapse into problem gambling. You don’t have to think very long to understand that bonuses and sustainable gambling don’t work together.”
He was particularly critical of the use of bonuses for online casino, saying that “some tea light holders from the Postcode Lottery may seem innocent. But when an online casino provider thanks its customers with cash, that’s cynicism.”
Skarplöth admitted that ATG had used bonuses in the past but said it was a “stupid idea” and the company later imposed its own bonus ban like fellow state-controlled operator Svenska Spel.
He said: “A few years ago, we tried to attract new customers in a competitive gaming market with a few tens of kroner per player as bait. It was a stupid idea and, incidentally, not even particularly successful, if by successful you mean adding new customers. Either way, it didn’t feel right, and we decided bonuses weren’t for us.”
Swedish gambling regulator announces meeting on B2B licences
Earlier this week, the Swedish gambling regulator Spelinspektionen pencilled in a meeting in Stockholm for December 7 to provide information on Sweden’s proposed new B2B licences for gaming suppliers. The meeting will be held to provide information to gaming stakeholders, although only if the Swedish legislature passes legislation for the new licences.
Although the law introducing B2B supplier licences still has to be approved by the legislature, the Swedish gambling regulator has set a date on which it will open the application process. Spelinspektionen says the process will open on March 1, 2023.
See also: Swedish gambling regulator clarifies rules on sports events that feature minors
