Betting Machine Stakes, a £98 reduction to just £2 per play.
Fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) have taken a hit this week as the Betting Machine Stakes will be reduced from £100 to just £2. A massive drop in stakes that will inevitably protect the venerable and impact on the Bookies profits.
The £2 restriction on the FOBT stake limit won’t come into effect until 2019. No date has been set, but the impact of the decision has already been felt. The gambling industry are starting to feel the pinch.
GVC Holdings (Ladbrokes) estimate that they could lose £160 million a year from the latest round of FOBT cuts. William Hill issued a warning that not only could they lose up to £100 million in profits, but warned that as many as 900 of its shops could become loss-making outlets.
The decision has been welcomed by anti-gambling campaigners in their fight to stop addiction. The betting terminals are a leading cause of addiction that inevitably leads to social and financial problems.
The reduction in the Betting Machine Stakes won’t stop gambling or eradicate addiction, but it is a step closer in the fight against players losing money too quickly with little control.
Paddy Power and Betfair welcomed the government intervention, saying “they had concerns that FOBTs were damaging the reputation of the gambling industry.”
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