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Compliance Updates

UK Will Not Ban Video Games Loot Boxes Despite Problem Gambling Findings

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Loot boxes in video games will not be banned in the UK, despite a government consultation finding evidence of a “consistent” association between the features and problem gambling.

Loot boxes have attracted comparison with gambling because they allow players to spend money to unlock in-game rewards, such as special characters, weapons or outfits, without knowing what they will get.

The features, popular in games such as Call of Duty and the Fifa football series, were effectively banned in Belgium in 2018, but the culture minister, Nadine Dorries, said the UK would not follow suit.

Instead, after a 22-month consultation, she said the government would discuss tougher “industry-led” protections with the UK’s £7bn gaming sector, drawing allegations from one expert that “foxes are guarding the hen house”.

Legislating to impose curbs or a prohibition on loot boxes as part of an expected overhaul of the UK’s gambling laws could have “unintended consequences”, Dorries said.

“For example, legislation to introduce an outright ban on children purchasing loot boxes could have the unintended effect of more children using adult accounts, and thus having more limited parental oversight of their play and spending,” the government said.

The government also concluded that while there was “a stable and consistent” association between loot boxes and problem gambling – identified across 15 peer reviewed studies – it could not be sure that there was a causative link.

“Our view is that it would be premature to take legislative action without first pursuing enhanced industry-led measures to deliver protections for children and young people and all players,” it said.

Another factor in the decision is that loot box rewards cannot legitimately be exchanged for real money, meaning players cannot in theory “cash out” as they might when gambling.

However, the Gambling Commission has previously warned that third-party sites are allowing people to exchange the rewards for real money.

While the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) stopped short of proposing legislation, Dorries said: “Children and young people should not be able to purchase loot boxes without parental approval.

“In addition, all players should have access to spending controls and transparent information to support their gaming.”

Ministers are expected to pursue tougher curbs through talks with the UK video games industry. This will be done via a working group, which is scheduled to deliver its first update in the first three months of 2023.

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Compliance Updates

Peru Reports 40% Drop in Illegal Online Gambling

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Peru’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) reported that, a little more than a year after having implemented the law that regulates the online sector, it has been able to reduce by 40% the offer of illegal games in digital platforms and applications.

In a public statement, the Executive portfolio in charge of regulating gambling also highlighted that, thanks to the inspection work, 15% of the illegal websites “have left the Peruvian market” and that “payment methods providers and financial entities have been contacted to block services to unauthorized operators”.

Based on this, Mincetur highlighted that “Peru has managed to position itself as a regional referent in the integral regulation of gambling” and that, through the normative framework, it was possible to “protect the consumer, guarantee transparency in the operations and promote the formal and sustainable economic development”.

The Ministry highlighted that with the implementation of Law No 31557, which regulates sports betting and online games, “the country became the third country in Latin America to establish clear regulations for this activity”.

“Since its entry into force in February 2024, 60 technological platforms have been authorized and 280 linked service providers have been registered, as well as the accreditation of nine international certification laboratories,” Mincetur said.

In this regard, the Ministry stated that “this regulation has made it possible to formalize the digital sector, promoting an environment of trust for both operators and users.” At the same time, it has allowed “new investment opportunities, boosting the digitalization of entertainment and strengthening the country’s tax collection”.

The post Peru Reports 40% Drop in Illegal Online Gambling appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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Colombia’s Coljuegos Intensifies its Efforts to Block Illegal Gambling Websites

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Coljuegos, the regulatory authority overseeing gambling sites in Colombia, has intensified its efforts to block illegal gambling websites. Coljuegos will now directly send requests to Internet Service Providers to block websites that operate online games without paying the respective royalties.

Coljuegos President Marco Emilio Hincapié said this strategy will be implemented based on Circular 017 of 2025, issued by the Ministry of ICT, which defined the guidelines and procedures for blocking websites dedicated to the exploitation, sale, payment, or advertising of unauthorized games of chance.

“From the Government of Change, we are working together to protect the gambling industry. After several roundtable discussions with the Ministry of Information and Communications (MINTIC), we were able to simplify the process of blocking illegal gambling websites,” Hincapié said.

The president of the entity highlighted that, to date, nearly 26,600 blocking orders have been issued to unauthorized betting sites.

“With this new procedure, we hope to block illegal platforms more quickly. We will no longer have to submit requests to different entities; instead, we will be able to order blocks directly from internet providers,” Hincapié said.

This Ministry of Information and Communications (MINTIC) measure is issued in compliance with Decree 0175 of 2025, which adopted tax measures due to the state of internal unrest declared by the National Government.

“In addition to fighting illegal operators, our goal is to protect resources for peace and health, as well as provide greater safeguards for the 14 authorized operators in the country,” Hincapié added.

The post Colombia’s Coljuegos Intensifies its Efforts to Block Illegal Gambling Websites appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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Compliance Updates

French GGR Reaches €14 Billion in 2024

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France’s gambling market reached a gross gaming revenue (GGR) of €14 billion in 2024, a 4.7% increase from 2023.

This growth applies to most segments of the market, particularly lotteries and online sports betting, where sales have risen by 19%, driven by the exceptional sporting calendar with the Euro football championships and the Paris Olympics.

The online market enjoyed a record year, with GGR of €2.6 billion, up 12% from 2023. Spearheading this growth, online sports betting recorded a GGR of almost €1.8 billion, up 19% grom 2023. With a market share of over 12% of the total gambling market, online sports betting is the second-largest contributor to market growth, accounting for 43%. Online horse betting is up slightly by almost 1%, while poker has seen its GGR fall by 2%, after growing continuously between 2021 and 2023.

As a sign of its vitality, after two years of decline, the online gaming market has seen significant growth in the number of Active Player Accounts (APAs), with 5.7M APAs (+11% compared with 2023). This trend can be seen across all market segments (13% growth for sports betting, 11% for poker and 4% for horse betting). Similarly, the number of unique players now stands at 3.9 million (up 8% from 2023, with an average player owning 1.5 accounts). The population of sports bettors is getting younger (30% of sports bettors are between 18 and 24 years old) and is also becoming more feminised.

Of the forty or so sports open to betting in France, four in particular stand out in terms of the amounts staked: football (€5,630m stakes), tennis (€2,273m), basketball (€914m) and rugby (€186m). In 2024, these 4 sports alone account for 87.5% of online sports betting stakes. Sports such as volleyball, ice hockey, badminton, handball and cycling have also seen a significant increase in their stakes (+31% between 2023 and 2024).

With a market share of almost 50%, FDJ United is the leading contributor to market growth and is consolidating its position as leader in the French gambling market, with a gross gaming revenue exceeding €7 billion for the first time (+6% compared to 2023). This growth is being driven mainly by lotteries (€5.8bn, +5% in GGR).

GIE PMU’s business, which record €6.6bn in bets and €1.7bn in GGR in 2024, is down 2%. However, PMU’s net profit remain stable at €837m (compared with €835m in 2023), enabling it to maintain its funding for the horseracing industry. Despite a slight drop in the PMU’s market share (12% of the market’s PBJ, supplanted for the first time by online sports betting), the PMU’s pool of players is up 6% in 2024 (3.5M players), returning to the 2019 level before the health crisis.

The year 2024 mark a consolidation for casinos, with GGR up slightly by 1.2% to €2.7 billion and the number of admissions stable at 31 million. Gaming club GGR slowed to €123m.

The post French GGR Reaches €14 Billion in 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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