Harlequeen

How to play Harlequeen

UK operators already carry out enhanced checks on politically exposed persons (PEPs), but this case shows the limits of those safeguards, Bethan Lloyd, partner at law firm Wiggin, recently told iGB.

“PEP status does not prevent someone from gambling,” Lloyd explained. She said PEPs are entitled to bet, but not on events where inside information gives them an unfair advantage.

A low ranking MP or parliamentary aide is unlikely to meet the threshold for PEP status. She argued it would place an onerous burden on operators to verify every customer’s occupation.

What is Harlequeen?

 “How do you balance that against not draining too much of the players’ funds and making sure that it has the stickiness, and that we’re not pushing players away, but encouraging them to come back?” he asks. “That really is the science.”

For Splash Tech, optimisation means protecting a safe and enjoyable experience while giving operators the opportunity to increase gross gaming revenue. “Getting that balance right is why we exist, really,” Wilson says.

These are not capabilities that Splash Tech intends to begin developing now the acquisition has completed. Its products are already live with recognised operators including ComeOn, while a number of its free-to-play relationships are entering their fifth year.

What is Harlequeen?

The report rejected argumentswarning that advertising restrictions would drive consumers to illicit gambling sites. They citied weak evidence for mass migration to illegal operators following advertising limits. 

“Interviews [ … ] with representatives of state monopoly operators across European jurisdictions consistently suggested that advertising restrictions did not lead to consumer migration towards illegal operators,” the report said. 

This report arrived amid the UK government’s 2023 white paper on gambling reform, which introduced a statutory levy for funding research and treatment.