Ireland has recently passed new laws affecting their online gambling industry, and many people in the community, especially in the UK, are talking about it.
These laws have wide-ranging effects on Irish and potentially UK gambling sites too. Here’s everything you should know about these new changes.
What are the new Irish gambling laws?
The new Irish gambling act was designed to target a few key aspects of the online gambling industry and its related programs.
Many of these aspects are intended to help promote safer, more responsible gambling, as well as assist in making major reductions in incidences of addiction or problem gambling.
For one thing, stricter laws are now in place regarding advertising online casinos, including how they handle their promotional offers. These rules are in place to protect those who are considered vulnerable to problem gambling, particularly minors and elders.
The new act also places certain limits on payment methods. You can still expect Irish casinos to accept multiple payment options. Irishluck lists top online casinos for players from Ireland, and their payment options are listed in their reviews of each site.
According to their recently updated content, most payment options will still be accepted, but online casino owners now need to abide by stricter rules to accept certain payment options when gaining their license.
Speaking of licenses, the new Irish act will force casino proprietors to hold specific licenses depending on where they operate and what kind of online casino, sports betting platform or gambling site they intend to launch.
Irish law recognises distinctions between gaming licenses, gambling licenses, lottery licenses and more, so online casino owners will now have to follow guidelines that correspond to the license they need to obtain.
Lastly, and arguably most importantly, the new laws have introduced many methods of improving the protection of players and customers.
This means you can expect more Irish online casinos to include FAQ pages dedicated to educating people about responsible gambling, more self-exclusion programs for those who feel they are struggling, and other practices focused on health and intervention.
How do these laws affect the industry?
It’s safe to say that online casino operators now have a lot more legal hoops they need to jump through for their sites and apps to be considered good enough for the public.
Technology has always had a big impact in the online casino world, just as it has in education, medicine or even the property industry.
Though online casinos from Ireland will continue to incorporate advanced software and payment options, they will need to be a lot more careful when selecting which advertisers and broadcasters they work with.
They will also have to be more mindful of their social media presence, which may include a reduction in social media accounts and platforms in general.
Online gambling companies will also see a change in their relationship with sponsorships, both actual and potential, because some sponsors are associated with advertising firms or gambling services that do not fully abide by the new laws.
Therefore, some gambling sites may have to cut ties with them, which will have knock-on effects on the coders, software providers and marketers they can afford.
Lastly, the penalties for breaking any gambling-related laws have gone up for online casino proprietors – we’re talking thousands of euros for minor offences and tens of millions for major ones.
This means that just one mistake could force an online casino out of business.
How do these laws affect players?
For the time being, players of online casinos can rest easy – these new Irish gambling laws are unlikely to have major effects on online casino enthusiasts for the time being.
Most of these new laws are designed to place stricter rules on casino operators and offer more protection for users. In other words, the experience for many Irish or UK online casino and sports bettors should remain unchanged from their point of view.
In the future, however, there are a few things that players should be on the lookout for, as these new Irish laws will impact how many online casinos operate.
Many online casino sites and apps will likely undergo a rebranding.
This isn’t a legal requirement in the new laws, but because some themes or visuals are considered a little too intense, many sites will try to adapt to these laws by creating a new image for their sites and games.
This means that some online casinos that you are currently registered with may acquire a new name or logo, and perhaps even a new set of games to play.
Additionally, because online casinos now face harsher penalties, it is even more important for players to stay informed and register only with casinos that are properly licensed.
Unlicensed online casinos and sports betting sites are much more likely to be hotspots for scams or suspicious activities that can leave you and your personal info vulnerable.
Though these laws will make online gambling safer for the general public, you should still take your personal cybersecurity seriously.
By Marcus Allenby
Advertising feature with irishluck.ie
