Personalisation and micro-betting in iGaming are two emerging trends that the Great Britain Gambling Commission deemed concerning. Sarah Gardner, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the organisation, stated that these trends require “serious thought.”
Micro-betting
Micro-betting is a new form of gambling that allows players to bet on specific “micro” events during a sports competition, rather than solely on the game’s outcomes. For example, during a game, a player might bet on the number of yellow cards issued in the next 20 minutes. Bettors are drawn to these bets because they receive faster results and can place multiple micro-bets throughout the competition, compared to waiting for the overall game outcome.
The integration of sports betting into mobile apps has significantly contributed to the emergence and widespread adoption of micro-betting. Operators can now process bets and display odds almost instantly—time being crucial in micro-betting scenarios.
Detractors argue that micro-betting poses greater risks to players due to its speed, excitement, reliance on chance rather than sports knowledge, and potential appeal to problem gamblers.
The Chief of the Great Britain Gambling Commission also noted that the subjective nature of micro-betting leads to numerous disputes between players and operators. For instance, disagreements may arise over whether a specific action occurred during a game.
She explained that this subjectivity presents new challenges for operators and regulators: “Events like goals scored, corners given, or yellow cards shown are objective—they either happened or they didn’t. That’s not so much the case on the increasingly popular player-level markets (or micro-betting). Whether a shot was taken, was on target, a tackle made and a variety of other micro-markets are ultimately more subjective. Once we introduce concepts which require a human being to make a subjective judgement, we introduce debate and argument. I’m not saying these micro-markets should not exist, but we have seen a notable increase in disputes from consumers where already higher-margin, multiple-selection bets now have elements which one person might see differently, especially when it makes the difference between winning and losing. “
Some types of bets similar to those described by Sarah Gardner are already prohibited in France by the ANJ, the French regulator. The ANJ has decided to ban bets that do not rely on the skill and sports knowledge of the bettors, insisting that bets must involve a sporting outcome. For example, it is not allowed to bet on “the colour of a player’s socks or whether the number of goals scored will be even or odd,” according to the ANJ guidelines.
Personalisation
Sarah Gardner, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Gambling Commission.
The GB Gambling Commission is also concerned about operators’ increasing interest in personalisation. Operators intend to use data collected during a bettor’s gameplay to tailor future interactions. Each game played provides operators with more insights into the player’s habits, enabling them to offer experiences perfectly suited to individual playing styles. Ultimately, the goal for operators is to maintain player engagement over extended periods.
“If products or their delivery increasingly align with a consumer’s interests and engagement triggers, what risks does this pose in terms of managing the risks of excessive gambling?”, warned Sarah Gardner from the GB Gambling Commission.
Conversely, operators argue that employing AI to monitor bettors’ preferences and habits can help identify problem gambling behaviours and therefore protect players. AI, for instance, could detect behavioural shifts, such as increased betting frequency following important losses.
However, Charles Ritchie, co-founder of the charity Gambling with Lives, strongly disagrees with the notion that AI can effectively mitigate harm: “Claims that AI could reduce harm in the gambling industry are merely a smokescreen. We have clear evidence from many bereaved families we support that AI algorithms are simply not acted upon.”
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