The black market is a problem for all of us

In every marketplace we hear that illegal gambling is a problem.

But what’s being done to tackle this and who does the work are the most important decisions.

The sector has reached a point of understanding the problems that arise from illegal gambling as they affect every part of each jurisdiction’s online betting and gaming ecosystem. One such issue is legal gambling not making the money it should, meaning it cannot support the taxation and community measures (such as responsible gaming) it is expected to and the promise of fair, safe and sustainable gambling activity is completely broken.

Illegal gambling should not exist in a regulated and licensed ecosystem but it does. It exists to service audiences with no other options, as well as those in markets facing legislative delays.

The black market offering players better value

It can compete for audience attention more effectively because of one key reason: value.

When you pay no tax, obey no rules or regulation, disavow all responsible gaming and exist solely by the maxim of paying the least to make the most, of course you can offer audiences the “best odds”, “unbeatable promotions” and “customer value and convenience”.

Illegal, unlicensed, unregulated and often criminal operators do not contribute to the ecosystem and actively harm their consumers. If customers do succeed on their platforms, they will often not pay them their winnings.

It preys and feeds on audiences by abusing one fundamental facet of gambling: risk. Legal gambling knows, accepts, engages and pays for a framework that manages player risks, as part of a licensed and responsible reality. Illegal gambling does not.

It exists in a “too good to be true” fever dream where if customers only took the care to know what they were engaging with – crime – they would run from it. How is anything offered by illegal, unlicensed and unregulated operators fair or safe? How can you win when the house is unsafe and unfair and no-one has oversight of their operations?

The unfortunate truth is that the audience is not running away from illegal gambling today. In many ways, they can’t, as it is difficult for them to distinguish between what is fair, safe, legal and licensed and what is not.

Solving the problems of illegal gambling is down to many of us thinking and acting together, rather than insisting it is someone else’s problem. Currently, regulators and the police are the most-often named “bag carriers” for these issues.

Whose problem is it?

All legal stakeholders should be involved in the fight against black market operators, including operators, affiliates, product manufacturers, regulators, government tax and treasury teams, media and ad platforms, content and streaming platforms, influencers and ambassadors, law enforcement, healthcare, social welfare and community organisations, trade associations, ISPs and telecoms providers, server hosts and locations, banks and payments providers, law makers and politicians, sports teams and leagues, athletes, managers, agents and event promoters.

To date, all methods for addressing illegal online gambling operations have failed because they relied on single instance measures that often point to a single destination (one website), single brand or event and do not understand the core issue. That every jurisdiction’s online marketplace has two industries within it: a legal, licensed one and an illegal, unlicensed side.

Why the entire ecosystem should be involved

It’s your problem because it’s your money at stake. 

Every jurisdictional marketplace is in a race for audience channelisation and revenue realisation and this battle will never end. There will always be audience interest and engagement with gambling, whether the market has legalised it or not. But once it is regulated, that revenue should be realised by the legal, licensed brands.

The framework needs criminal identification, reduction, prevention and removal at its core, for every legal stakeholder. And every legal stakeholder should care about their awareness of, actions towards and processes for defeating illegal gambling for their own self-interested reasons.

At Yield Sec we want licensed, legal online gambling stakeholders to deal with their illegal gambling problems by making the money currently being spent on the black market. We can help stakeholders identify, optimise and rectify their position in the marketplace and how much share they are earning, by taking money back from the illegal market.

How Yield Sec works

Analysing the entire marketplace matters and is the main focus for Yield Sec’s monitoring efforts. Many methodologies make for the optimally protected marketplace.

Under the bonnet of Yield Sec’s AI, machine-learning and expert human teams lies our core focus: identifying, qualifying and quantifying the total marketplace in each jurisdiction, including the legal and illegal operators. We analyse everything from operators’ ads and promotions, audience interactions and engagement with their content and what the value of that engagement is. Our ethos is many methodologies used together make for the optimal and protected marketplace.

Illegal gambling marketplaces can be seen as an iceberg with the legal industry representing the bright white cap under which a sea of criminality lies. Our data has been able to uncover how deep that iceberg goes. Additionally, we know what to do about it, in actionable terms, for each and every legal stakeholder that we work for. Many methodologies used together make for the optimally protected marketplace.

The data we deliver shows the reality of the entire marketplace and our analyses can help stakeholders gain control and be at an advantage in knowing how the illegal market is operating.

Credibility counts

We know certain audiences should not gamble, particularly children and self-excluded players and these audiences find their way into gambling via illegal operators which tarnishes gambling’s credibility.

Not dealing with the devastating impacts on these two audiences presents an existential threat for the entire igaming ecosystem in every jurisdiction.

Targeting self-excluded players

Illegal gambling operators are entering marketplaces like the UK target players that have self-excluded via the national scheme GAMSTOP. By optimising around search terms like “Not on Gamstop” or “Gamstop Casinos” they have gained a foothold in the UK and are taking advantage of the most vulnerable in society. The issue can be addressed by us as legal stakeholders.

To solve this we should ensure search engine results, social media and online ads around GAMSTOP should only deliver results for GAMSTOP, mental health and addiction services and a warning page on Google, similar to what already exists for search results across terms like “suicide”, “anorexia” and “bulimia”. Ultimately, sites offering players a chance to bypass the exclusion scheme should be blocked and removed from Google.

Only preventing sponsored links for GAMSTOP-related searches on Google is not the answer, especially when few illegal operators will pay for sponsored links and rely upon organic results to fuel their businesses. All searches involving the term GAMSTOP should prioritise self-exclusion, not the delivery of thousands of results for illegal sports betting, casinos and financial loans.

This is not just a problem for Google, GAMSTOP or the regulators. The search terms and evolution around them will adapt, as is the nature of crime. Therefore only constant monitoring and co-operation around abuse of the legitimate GAMSTOP scheme will prevent it from becoming ineffective and meaningless for the vulnerable individuals who seek its protection.

If those individuals are not protected and the monitoring, policing and enforcement of the marketplace is not optimised by all legal stakeholders working together, all of us will be tarnished by the impact these criminal entities will have on the self-exclusion scheme.

The solution? Kick crime out of gambling

Not dealing with issues like the abuse and victimisation of children and self-excluded audiences by illegal operators is simply allowing the legal business to fall into disrepute.

When that happens there is no limit to how damaged marketplace conditions will become. Legal gambling should not be used as the “whipping boy” for crooks and the theft, abuse and crime they create.

Legal online gambling can stamp out the black market once every stakeholder takes action and acts in their own best interest.

It’s your marketplace and your money, so let’s take control back together.