Cooperation between government agencies and multinational IT companies is becoming increasingly important to ensure effective monitoring of the activities of gambling organisers. Accordingly, illegal gambling faces serious challenges in the context of increased control by national regulators.
Recently, the German Joint Gambling Authority (GGL) and Alphabet Inc. (owner of Google) demonstrated another positive example of such cooperation for the state. Thus, the GGL announced a significant reduction in the advertising of unlicensed gambling providers on the Internet through Google Ads, which took place after the new rules of Google's advertising policy in the field of "Gambling and other games" came into effect in Germany on 25 September this year.
The new Google Ads policy now allows only authorised gambling organisers and intermediaries with GGL permissions to advertise on the platform. In particular, it excludes services that combine multiple gambling providers on comparison sites. This ensures that Google's search results prioritise locally licensed gambling providers, thus reducing the likelihood of potential consumers being exposed to ads from illegal sites.
The work on the implementation of the new rules lasted almost two years. The update of Google's advertising policy on gambling in the German Internet segment was the result of fruitful cooperation between GGL and Alphabet inc. It is worth noting that it was the path of constructive dialogue with the search giant chosen by GGL instead of imposing another formal administrative ban that led to such a positive result.
Based on the already demonstrated positive dynamics from the introduction of new rules for advertising using the services of the Internet giant Google, GGL stressed the need for further action, especially in the field of search engine optimisation. Such attention to this area is primarily due to the fact that illegal operators often use sophisticated SEO tactics, including link building campaigns and manipulation of search engine rankings, to avoid restrictions on advertising.
Accordingly, the task of comprehensive counteraction to illegal gambling is on the agenda, using both new search algorithms and specialised software. It is also worth considering the creation of joint databases containing information about licensed gambling market organisers, which can be accessed in real time to help identify illegal websites and target their advertising.
Ukraine also needs to deepen cooperation in this area with multinational companies, as now, during the war, illegal gambling sites not only harm the Ukrainian economy, but also pose a threat to national security through the organisation of the collection of personal data of Ukrainians and their transfer to russia, as a significant part of illegal operators in the Ukrainian gambling market are russian sites.
And since illegal gambling is often transnational, it is important to cooperate between different countries to share information and best practices in the fight against this phenomenon. Such cooperation can significantly increase the effectiveness of gambling market control and reduce the impact of illegal operators on society.
The application of these approaches can help Ukraine reduce the volume of illegal gambling advertising and improve overall control over the gambling market.
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