The UK Gambling Commission’s executive director of research and policy has offered a parting shot to industry before his September exit from the regulator.
In conversation with NEXT.io at iGB Live, Tim Miller spoke about some of the names dotted around the Excel London, and whether the regulator is concerned that there are companies here known to be engaged with the black market.
“There are absolutely names that I see on the show floor here today that I would have some concerns about,” Miller said.
“I think what it indicates is that we talk about the licensed market and the illegal market like they are two coexisting but completely separate entities, and that’s just not the reality. It is a very blurry line between the two of those.”
It has been 10 years since Miller’s appointment to the Gambling Commission, and he noted the “valedictory” sense he got speaking at iGB Live’s Sustainable Gambling Zone.
When he vacates his role in autumn, Miller will go on to support governments and regulators in developing gambling regulatory systems around the world.
The announcement of his departure noted that Miller’s new work will take him out of the British gambling industry, though he leaves the UK market with some advice from his wealth of experience.
Can’t do it on our own
Miller called for greater collaboration in combatting the black market, saying that the UKGC can’t do it without buy-in elsewhere.
In his conversation with Ewa Bakun, director of industry relations at WorldGaming, he argued that too many “key players are not taking their role seriously.”
On this point he named Meta, claiming that tech companies are “failing British consumers” in their lack of proactivity on illegal market ads.
As he sees it, the regulator’s toughest challenge is not identifying and finding illicit sites, but stopping them appearing in the first place, and to achieve that he has called for increased unity all across the ecosystem, and a greater acceptance of responsibility from industry.
He made this appeal with a particular eye on B2B suppliers and affiliates.
But while there are companies with a “foot in both camps” exhibiting at trade shows like iGB Live, does that unity feel like it could be a reality any time soon?
Miller told NEXT.io that licensed operators in the UK need to “pick a side” or face tough consequences, whether those are regulatory or criminal.
He concluded: “You cannot be using suppliers and affiliates that are also supporting the illegal market.”
