Responsible Gaming Foundation announces four-year plan

The Responsible Gaming Foundation today presented a four-year business plan with the aim of implementing measures promoting responsible gaming.

The measures vary from the promotion of responsible marketing to the drafting of a detailed study portraying a clear picture of Malta's gaming scenario.

Foundation chairman Silvio Schembri said that while the gaming industry was one of the biggest contributors to the domestic economy, yet its negative impacts could not be ignored.

Such negative effects would vary from physical and mental health, an individual's financial situation, his work performance and even personal relationships.

"At EU level, it is estimated that between 0.5% to 2% of those who make use of gaming services end up with some sort of addiction. However, we also believe that these figures may not reflect the true picture due to lack of research," the Labour MP said.

Youths, he said, were five times more exposed to gaming risks than adults, the main culprits being electronic gaming machines and online gaming.

A GrantThornton report revealed that 30% of those survey spent substantial hours a day playing online.

An analysis by GrantThornton provided a compelling case for Malta "to get its house in order".

Maltese people tend to play digital and video games about once a day for an average of an hour. The people who tend to play several times in a day also play for a greater amount of hours, for an average of four to six hours.

Schembri said research in Malta was practically non-existent while there should be more promotion of responsible marketing and an in-depth analysis of current advertisements.

An educational campaign would also target families of individuals with addiction problems while offering support services, helpline and rehab services to gambling addicts.

PN MP Kristy Debono, as an Opposition representative, said that it was important for rehab services to be segregated from other addictions. Presently, gaming addicts follow the same courses and live in the same quarters as those who are fights drugs and alcohol addiction.

"The success if the gaming industry in Malta is that we always sought to reach the best socio-economic balance. The Nationalist Opposition, having paved the way for such responsible gaming, is supporting the proposals and we hope that the government does see through the implementation of this plan," Debono said.

The PN also proposed a responsible gaming code of ethics for operators.

With around 260 companies and 430 licenses, the gaming industry contributes to 12% of the GDP.

The first six months of 2014 saw an increase of 25% in licenses issued while the number of registered companies increased by 17%.

Welcoming the Opposition's cooperation, parliamentary secretary Jose Herrera said political maturity called for cooperation on Malta's primary economic sectors.

He said, that the government wanted the gaming industry to continue flourishing while paying attention to the social repercussions.