Flutter Entertainment has funded an independent research grant for Canada’s Responsible Gambling Council (RGC) that will provide ‘first-of-a-kind baseline research’ for North American gambling stakeholders on marketing and advertising standards. 

The research will be led by RGC’s CABP – Centre for the Advancement of Best Practices (CABP) unit, tasked with examining the current practices, policies, standards and safeguards applied across North America’s fragmented gambling landscape.

The RGC’s research project comes at a critical juncture for North American gambling,  following April’s launch of Ontario’s newly regulated online gambling regime and as US consumer watchdogs question the volume of online betting adverts displayed to national audiences. 

“This is an opportunity to provide cutting edge thought leadership to the industry,” said George Sweny, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, Flutter International.

“This foundational research will help us all make necessary strides towards bridging the gap between best and better practices in an area of significant importance. Leading progress is one of the key pillars of our global Play Well strategy, and we are delighted to be working with the RGC to support this important research.”

The multi-phase project will examine evidence and undertake research to provide effective guidance on best practices for improving marketing and advertising standards. 

Further responsibilities will see the CABP team develop deeper insights from regulators and operators to help identify opportunities for quality improvement.

The RGC maintains its long-term goal of building a world-class responsible gambling framework in Ontario that will share best practices and influence responsible gaming policies and practices with its North American counterparts. 

Shelley White, CEO, RGC, said: “Through this research, we not only have the ability to affect necessary changes to our marketing and advertising standards here in Ontario, but also the ability to make great impacts to the harm minimization efforts of jurisdictions all around the world.

“This comprehensive study truly highlights the culture shift that the industry is currently undergoing, and by leveraging our research partners, we can make greater impacts in protecting players and communities.”