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Younger Swedes Self-Exclude from Gambling

Posted on June 1, 2019March 22, 2021 by Kat Orlov

Young Swedes exclude from gaming en masse
Voluntary exclusions are for a period determined by the customer
The regulator continues to warn wrongdoers about a possible license revocation

Swedish Youths Exclude from Online Gambling

At the turn of the year, Sweden legalized its online gambling industry, allowing licensed operators to start offering products in the country. Nearly half a year after the industry launched, some interesting numbers have surfaced in regards to self-exclusion.

Estimated half of all gamers are aged between 25 and 34, the latest data revealed. Spelinspektionen, the country’s gambling watchdog, posted the numbers on May 31. Along with the self-exclusion statistics, the regulator posted specific data about the state of gambling addiction in the country.

Based on Spelinspektionen data, over 35,000 today have opted into the voluntary exclusion criteria, with 40% of all participants being in the aforementioned age range. At the beginning of last month, 2,800 people rolled into the self exclusion scheme.

Sweden Curbs Its Gambling Addicts Successfully

Sweden has set an example of successfully curbing gambling addiction. After a BBC report established shortcomings in the United Kingdom’s own exclusion scheme, other countries have been wary not to replicate the mistakes of one of the largest iGaming markets in the world.

Meanwhile, the Nordic country has been using individuals’ BankID numbers to guarantee that no funds can ever be forwarded towards gambling outlets online. The exclusion scheme, Spelpaus.se,already applies to multiple verticals, including:

Lotteries
Slot games
Bingos

Players are allowed to exclude themselves for a period of one, three or six months. Still, there is an option allowing individuals to exclude for a custom period of time and the majority of people have opted for at least one year off the gaming grid.

All online casinos in Sweden have had to integrate Spelpaus.se as part of their license agreements. The Spelinspektionen has been very tough on wrongdoers. In Mach, Genesis Gaming and Paf Consulting were handed down stiff penalties over failure to enforce self-excluded players.

Apart from a penalty, the regulator issued a warning regarding the license of the operators. Spelinspektionen won’t hesitate to strip any wrongdoer from their privilege to operate gaming solutions in the country, the watchdog said in a statement.

No Bonuses, No Room for Addiction

Unlike other markets, Sweden doesn’t allow operators to introduce bonuses past the registration offer, which cuts operators from one of the time-tested methods to retain customers and urge them to stay on at the casinos longer.

Recently, Betway received a fine for extending additional goodies after the registration bonus, which the Spelinspektionen sanctioned accordingly. The watchdog has issued new warnings that breaking the terms and agreements of the license partnership would result in revocation of permits for wrongdoers.

Sweden’ Regulator Releases 2018 Gaming Survey

Posted on January 13, 2019January 13, 2019 by Carmen Thompson

Spelinspektionen releases comprehensive gambling study for 2018
Number of gamers in Sweden remains unchanged at rate of participation of 66%
Gaming still takes place predominantly at land-based venue
Over half of gamers not aware about self-exclusion schemes

Sweden’s gaming regulatory body, the Spelinspektionen, has released an annual survey analysing the country’s gaming habits in 2018.

Sweden’s Regulatory Gaming Survey for 2018

On Friday, January 11, the Spelinspektionen (the newly re-branded watchdog in Sweden) released a comprehensive annual study looking into the gaming and betting habits of Swedes. Based on the survey, estimated 66% of the population placed a wager in some form throughout 2018.

The numbers kept steady from a year before when it was established that a similar number of participants had placed a wager. The numbers in both last years are still lower than the 76% participation rate, and the numbers have been mostly falling since 2013. However, with 66% of the population engaging in lottery activities in one form or another, the market is a fresh opportunity for many operators.

MRG and Bethard Ready to Grow in Swedish Market

In fact, as many as 60 companies have secured a license from the regulator and are now either offering or in the process of developing their gaming portfolios in the country. The survey also focused on the present looking into January’s results, asking participants if they had gambled in the past week.

Swedish Gaming Self-Exclusion and Popular Verticals

Estimated 34% said that they had placed a wager, although there was also an increase in the number of players who said that they had not gambled in the slightest – 16%. There were other interesting metrics emerging from the survey, such as how trustworthy are gambling operations according to public (with some people 22% saying not at all).

There were also those who said that the current gambling products were boring to begin with (17%). This explains why NetEnt, one of the main iGaming software developers, have decided to let some staff go in order to focus on game creation. Most iGaming studios have focused on creating a more authentic gaming experience, which is increasingly beginning to resemble video games.

Interestingly enough, engagement with land-based properties was at 57% (most likely because of the lack of online alternatives) whereas 17% chose to go online. These numbers are likely to even out or reverse completely in 2019.

There’s been a marked increase in Smart TV gambling with the activity reaching 5% of the total. Gambling advertisement is very common on Swedish television. There were also 14% of activities that were lumped together in “other ways,” without any specification of what the activities were in the first place.

Swedes seems to be very sober in their gambling choices and practices, with only 3% of all interviewed persons admitting that they overdid gambling in the week leading up to the interview. Still, there is a big knowledge gap when it comes to self-exclusion schemes, with 52% of people not even aware of the existence of the option.