Kindred Group, ATG and Svenska Spel have published their first ‘key metric report’ on Swedish problem gambling rates and interventions related to their individual businesses.
In Autumn 2022, the businesses pledged to openly report on four key gambling harm metrics, with an update provided every six months and presented to Spelinspektionen, Sweden Gambling’s Inspectorate.
A commitment was made to “contribute to a facts-based dialogue on what is being done to reduce gambling harm” by Sweden’s biggest operators, who currently account for “more than half of Sweden’s regulated gambling marketplace.”
Key metrics displayed to the public show the percentage of customers contacted of suspected/detected problem gambling behaviours. The report contains further information on self-exclusion ratios following customer care interventions.
The trio’s first report detailed that Kindred, Sweden’s largest online gambling operator, had contacted 0.5% of customers who it suspected were displaying problematic behaviours.
The metric is followed by Svenska Spel reporting contact with 4.2% of problematic customers across its ‘Sports-&-Casino’ online business. Meanwhile, ATG, Sweden’s state-owned racing operator, reported a 1.4% contact with customers showing signs of ‘risky behaviour.’
The ‘percentage of contacted customers‘ who reduced their gambling was recorded at 76% for Kindred and 75% for Svensk Spel’s online unit. ATG recorded the lowest impact on reduced gambling at 52%.
Kindred reported that contacted individuals had reduced their gambling on average (deposits) by a rate of 75%. The metric carried the greatest variance amongst participants, as Svenska Spel and ATG recorded a respective lower impact of 49% and 65%.
Svenska Spel led the trio on ‘self-exclusion success‘, as it reported that 9% of contacted customers took a break shorter than six months, whilst 3% chose to stay self-excluded for six months and longer.
On self-exclusion, Kindred registered 1.4% of contacted customers who took a six-month break and 0.5% who decided to exclude for longer periods. ATG reported a self-exclusion rate of 1.5% and 2.2%.
Submitting the report, the trio urged Swedish counterparts to join the transparent reporting initiative; “these reports will hopefully inspire more Swedish licensed operators to publish the same key metrics and thereby contribute to a more transparent and fact-based dialogue.”
This week Folkhälsomyndigheten, Sweden’s Public Health Agency, was warned by senior psychiatric clinicians of limited data available on problem gambling, which is currently published on a yearly basis.
Senior clinicians cited that current data lags had impacted the ability for Sweden’s addiction services to intervene with vulnerable citizens demonstrating problematic gambling behaviours.
Signing Kindred’s first report, CEO Henrik Tjärnström commented: “Our decision together with ATG and Svenska Spel to openly publish important customer behaviour data, in addition to our Journey towards zero ambition, will make it easier for our stakeholders to follow and understand how we, with the help of regulation, technology, research and human interaction, work to prevent harmful gambling.
“We believe that a more fact-based and open dialogue contributes to a more sustainable industry and we hope other operators will follow.”
Source: SBC News
