New Initiative Unveiled at Gaming Conference

Gaming organizations will soon have a new tool to help understand the impact responsible gambling programs and initiatives can have on players.

The Nova Scotia Responsible Gambling Impact Index (NS-RG-II) was unveiled today, Oct. 4, at the sixth annual Responsible Gambling Conference in Halifax.

"The NS-RG-II will help the gaming industry assess which responsible gambling programs experts believe are most effective, why they work, and which ones are most suitable for specific games and gaming environments," said Marie Mullally, president and CEO of the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation. "This is a world-first initiative that will advance the industry as it relates to responsible gambling and NSGC is proud to be the funding partner."

Richard Wood and Mark Griffiths developed the NS-RG-II which brought together the knowledge and expertise of internationally acclaimed experts in gambling research, treatment providers and recovered problem gamblers.

"The NS-RG-II bridges an important gap between theory and practice which will create more effective programs as well as ensure funds spent on developing and applying responsible gambling strategies are optimally used," said Mr. Wood.

"This tool significantly moves the practice of responsible gambling forward to provide help to the gaming industry on which responsible strategies are best for which games," said Mr. Griffiths.

Through a process of consensus building over many months, the various merits of contemporary responsible gambling features and tools were examined by stakeholders.

"This information is extremely useful from a game development perspective," said John Xidos, president and CEO of Techlink Entertainment, a Cape Breton-based game and systems manufacturer. "Standards in the gaming industry have evolved and players expect us to use the best research available. This is a breakthrough and will raise the bar for responsible gambling in the industry. As a leader and innovator in this regard, we welcome this."

More than 60 responsible gambling programs and tools, from providing self-tests to help players better understand their play behavior and player defined spending limits to promoting responsible gambling training to staff, were examined.