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Losing money in poker is part of the game. Some players understand this, others don’t. In pursuit of a big win or even wagering, people lose their heads. Gambling addiction can cause deterioration of well-being, depression and even suicide. Therefore, there is an institution of responsible gaming in the gambling world.

Responsible gambling means that the company ensures the safety of players in the gambling hobby. Responsible play includes 2 aspects:

• The company’s responsibility for restricting minors in the game;
• The company’s responsibility for limiting users prone to gambling addiction.

Principles of responsible gambling for the operator

The principles include:

• Informing players about the nature of gambling as an entertainment involving certain risks, and not as a way to generate income;
• Encouraging players to bet within reasonable limits;
• Providing sufficient information about the game so that players can assess the risk of participating in them.

In addition to the general and rather vague principles, which are usually prescribed in the “Responsible Gambling” section on the operator’s website, one of the most effective ways is to establish mechanisms for limiting participation and ensuring the player’s self-exclusion from the online casino platform.

Preventive measures

The company has prepared several useful recommendations for controlling your own perception of the game, which you just need to get acquainted with in detail in the “Responsible Game” section. Of the most important tips listed there, it is worth highlighting the following:

• Determine in advance the limit of time and financial resources that you consider acceptable to spend for the sake of the game;
• In the course of the game itself, keep track of these limitations and try not to go beyond the self-established framework;
• If you lose, never try to recoup immediately. Firstly, we must understand that defeats are exactly the same companion of the game as victories. And, secondly, the negative is not an assistant in a sound assessment of the situation;
• Play only with your own money and do not borrow for these purposes;
• Do not rely on “magic” schemes and combinations that, from time to time, are advertised by “well-wishers”. Bets, in principle, are based on the probability theory of an event. And in sports betting, the human factor is also superimposed. The bookmaker evaluates the probability of a certain outcome with event coefficients, and the bettor agrees or not with him when making a bet;
• Combine betting in the company with another hobby. This will allow you not to get hung up on the game, and keep positive emotions from the process at any outcome.

Social responsibility of bookmakers: what is it?

The social responsibility of bookmakers includes many different components, including working in accordance with the law and awareness of their responsibility to customers (that is, maintaining the principles of responsible gambling).

Here are the main measures of social responsibility of bookmakers. Compliance with some of them is required by law, while others remain as if “at the discretion” of representatives of the gambling business:

• Full protection of players’ personal information;
• Countering money laundering and other criminal schemes;
• Ethically responsible marketing;
• Support of domestic sports and charity;
• Prohibition of gambling for minors;
• Game dependency warning;
• Security measures for vulnerable (dependent) players.

We did not include such things as the payment of winnings in the list: of course, this is a self-evident requirement for the BC and, of course, this obligation is prescribed in the law. Let’s look at some of the above measures in more detail.

Mandatory verification of players

If we consider the rules of virtual casinos, they must necessarily inform users about possible gaming risks, encourage players through various bonuses, loyalty programs, close access to people included in the unified blacklist due to gambling addiction. Violation of all these rules entails substantial fines and even the deprivation of the operator’s license.

The fight against ludomania takes special attention in the concept of responsible play. In order to be admitted to a ground-based institution or an online platform, the player must first pass verification. In the first case, the casino checks the identity card, in the second case, the user is identified by digital documents. Operators are required to strictly comply with this rule in order to prevent minors or people with gambling addiction from playing. In addition, gambling organizers should closely monitor each player, react if a person behaves inappropriately, plays for days on end, etc.

All the listed rules and principles are aimed at one thing – the formation of a proper gambling culture. This is especially important in countries where the industry has only recently been legalized and its philosophy needs to be revised.

Security measures for vulnerable (dependent) players

One of the main tasks of responsible gaming is to protect dependent players from betting (they are also called gamblers or ludomaniacs). Here, bookmakers offer a number of measures aimed at minimizing risks:

• Self-exclusion. The player enters his name into the database for self-exclusion, and the bookmaker no longer accepts bets from him;
• Temporary self-exclusion. At the discretion of the player: for a month, a year or another period;
• Posting information on bookmakers’ websites about special organizations that help overcome addiction.

Final thoughts

The presence of the “Responsible Gaming” page in the casino is a requirement of the licensor, which is mandatory. Some jurisdictions, for example, Malta, tighten the rules of advertising on social networks, prohibiting casinos from publishing posts with stories of people who were lucky enough to win a large sum. No matter how much the gambling business operator would like to involve more people into its orbit, regardless of age and possible problems with gambling, the online casino is obliged to help problem players and allow only adults to gamble, thereby showing social responsibility and respect for the laws of a civilized market.