Comment Changing
perceptions of the industry
Simon Johnson, chief executive at Business In Sport & Leisure, talks about how his trade association can make a difference for all the gambling sectors.
T
he gambling sector has a great deal of importance for Business In Sport & Leisure. Our new chairman Chris Bell will be known to many Betting Business readers as the former chief executive of Ladbrokes plc, so we approach the challenge of providing effective repre- sentation from a position of great knowledge and insight into the dynamics and chal- lenges facing the betting sector.
My first BISL Conference in November 2011 will be remembered by those present for the fantastic speakers and fascinating presentations. It will also be remembered for the claims about LBO prolif- eration in areas of income deprivation made by Harriet Harman and the robust, empirically backed defence of the business by Dirk Vennix, CEO of the ABB. I think this particular exchange demonstrated that BISL, with its broad member- ship, is able to engage with politicians and decision makers in a way other bodies simply cannot. Harriet Harman attended the BISL Conference due to the broad spectrum of businesses and sectors that were repre- sented, when she might not have chosen to attend a betting only forum. The make- up of BISL’s membership means that we are always able to talk to politicians on the broad challenges and oppor- tunities facing the sport & leisure industry.
BISL can and should create a better narrative around the leisure industry. It is time that the sport and leisure industry was seen for what it is; a major employer, particularly of young people and part time workers, a contributor to the economy, a magnet for inward investment and a major sector of industry. We need to be a ‘good news story’. It is too easy to pick on parts of our industry and use them as a punchbag to achieve political advantage. Problem gambling, disorder in city centres, the decline of the High Street - are all sticks with which parts of our industry are beaten. Too often, small sections of the media talk about sectors of our industry as though they are ‘toxic’.
We have to change the nar- rative. It is about time that we as an industry were perceived by the public and politicians as important a sector to the economy as manufacturing, retail, construction, transport and engineering.
BISL will lead a process to come up with concrete pro- posals to help the entire sport and leisure industry to grow and to enable our voice to be heard; a process which also gives us a political environ- ment that sees our industry as a force for good. BISL can lead that work and uniquely speak for the whole of the industry. The criticism and threats to LBOs took me aback some- what. They are sinister and it is only a short step before the criticism turns to AGCs, bingo clubs and to casinos. That is why if we can change the nar- rative around the leisure industry, it will help. It is why cross industry leadership can get our arguments straight to the point.
Therefore our Gambling Group, under the inspired leadership of Nick Harding, will address an agenda which touches on the major strate- gic challenges facing the sector and represent those issues to government in a cross industry way. Not only are we actively working with our members to address the Triennial Review and Machine Games Duty, but we are also going to work on ways to emphasise the employment opportunities, the economic regeneration possibilities, the growth in skills and training and the innovation and cre- ativity which would be enhanced by a more positive view of the gambling sector and loosening the regulatory stranglehold which affects us at present.
Protecting the poker eco-system from sharks
Bodog Network CEO Patrik Selin believes his firm’s revolutionary Recreational Poker Model - which anonymises its players - is the future for the industry, after it has had a few tweaks to make it even fairer.
T
he uproar caused by the most recent component of the Bodog Recreational Poker Model has seen the most vocal criticism of
what we are trying to do and this was to be expected. Let’s bear in mind that on top of the fact that over 90 per cent of operators cater directly to the needs of the sharp player there is also a whole subsection of the industry creating tools to make the sharp player stronger. Sharp players, therefore, have a huge choice of rooms they can use. The casual player does not have anything like as many options and hence their entertainment value is decreased.
Most people would agree that this all harms the user experience of the casual player which are so crucial to the eco-system of any poker business. Equally a poker operator, especially one with an affiliated sportsbook, does not want a poker room where cash is being drained out of their (mainly sports betting) customers by sharp poker players.
What is also not in doubt is that the online poker industry has been, at best, stagnant, for quite some time and I feel strongly that is because the casual players are drifting away because they have a bad experience. In essence they are losing money too quickly and therefore not enjoying much bang for their buck.
With the system we now have in place nobody can know our traffic figures and, yes, we have seen a few sharp players leave us as we expected
62 BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 2012
of next year, indeed we are now brining it in ahead of having a full Mac solution for the new software.
THE SOLUTION: Players will be able
but have seen very little decrease in traffic since the implementation of the new software. However, when you strip back all the emotional comments from people with vested interests whether they be players that use HUDs or are datamining com- panies there is only really one criticism that stands up to scrutiny and that is whether the lack of usernames can increase the opportunity for collusion. The solution is a relatively simple one but as the concern has been raised we will bring forward its introduction to Q1
to request their hand history for any game they feel was wrong with the added bonus of having ALL cards from the hand ‘open’. Players can then high- light any problems to our team who will delve further into any issues. As the tables are anonymous it is possible for players to view all the cards rather than just their own. This solution will actually give our system a higher security value than poker rooms with usernames. THE FUTURE: Already the Recre- ational Poker Model eliminates the HUD player who is simply playing the odds on multiple tables – he is essentially playing similarly to a bot without actu- ally being one. This is better for the casual player. We will also introduce a number of fun features like the ability to show just one card when you muck, reintroduce the ability for players to see their folded cards as the hand plays out and also additional graphics on the cards at certain times of a game; when you win, when you lose, when you fold and even when you get a genuine bad beat. All to enhance the entertainment factor for the casual player. Our previous changes to the rake- back systems that were rewarding winners rather than depositing players are better for the casual player. Our blocking of other datamining sites is better for the casual player. Having a poker room full of casual players is good for all players and all operators.
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