A new UK Gambling Commission discussion paper addressing the blurred lines between esports, social gaming and gambling was published this week. In the paper, the regulator outlines some of its concerns about the new gambling landscape that has emerged over the last few years, formed by new technology and new forms of gaming. The paper hopes to provoke discussion, presumably as a means of informing future policy.
High on the agenda is whether gambling with virtual currencies, like bitcoin, and in-game items, like skins, constitute gambling and whether they therefore require a gambling license. The UKGC is fairly clear on bitcoin; last week it updated a clause in its License Conditions and Codes of Practice to include the use of digital currencies as a valid method of transactions for its licensees.
High on the agenda is whether gambling with virtual currencies, like bitcoin, and in-game items, like skins, constitute gambling and whether they therefore require a gambling license. The UKGC is fairly clear on bitcoin; last week it updated a clause in its License Conditions and Codes of Practice to include the use of digital currencies as a valid method of transactions for its licensees.