Source · Select Committees · Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Not Addressed
Paragraph: 62
Review the case for banning children's access to all social casino games
Recommendation
Social casino products are the latest example of the convergence between video games and gambling. Though it has responded to the specific issue of loot boxes, the Government must address this wider trend to ensure harms, particularly to children, are prevented. It will be more difficult to do so if gambling continues to be defined solely on the basis of whether a prize from a game can be cashed out. The Government should review the case for banning children’s access to social casino games.
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Paragraph Reference:
62
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government · verbatim extract
Not Addressed
32. The Government pays close attention to novel and emergent forms of gambling and gambling-like products, including social casino games, to ensure that appropriate regulation is in place. The Committee has recognised our work with the video games industry to improve player protections with regards to loot boxes. We continue to work with the Gambling Commission to monitor areas where there is a potential blurring of lines between video games and gambling, and understand the risks posed. The Government is of the view that the ability to legitimately cash out rewards is an important distinction for gambling products. Where video games do amount to unlicensed gambling, the Gambling Commission has shown it will take strong action, for example by blocking payments and delisting websites. We recognise that social casino games may pose a risk to players, including children and young people, and we continue to monitor their impact. In 2023, we published the Video Games Research Framework to improve our understanding of the positive and negative impacts of video games.
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