EU Parliament Hosts Responsible Gaming Day

21 April 2008

"Responsible Gaming Day" took place at the European Parliament last week, bringing together gaming industry parties, policy makers, and academics to discuss best practices and knowledge in the field of responsible gaming.

Protection of minors was a key focus of discussions. Andrew Poole, Managing Director of GamCare commented: “There needs to be shared responsibility to minimise underage gaming. Consistent regulation across jurisdictions and proper education are key in achieving an effective industry-wide response to underage gaming.”

The event also featured academia specialised in gaming and betting behaviour research who emphasised the need to use scientific research rather than conjecture when talking about online problem gaming. Richard LaBrie, Ed. D. Harvard Medical School commented: “The advantage of online gaming is that you can track data in real time rather than relying on self reports, which may lack reliability.”