{"id":581,"date":"2025-04-23T14:21:36","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T14:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/?p=581"},"modified":"2025-04-24T21:50:43","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T21:50:43","slug":"operators-frustrated-as-uk-shelves-plans-to-relax-retail-slot-machine-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/23\/operators-frustrated-as-uk-shelves-plans-to-relax-retail-slot-machine-rules\/","title":{"rendered":"Operators Frustrated as UK Shelves Plans to Relax Retail Slot Machine Rules"},"content":{"rendered":"

The post Operators Frustrated as UK Shelves Plans to Relax Retail Slot Machine Rules<\/a> appeared first on Vegas Slots Online News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

AGC sector unhappy<\/h2>\n

Operators of adult gaming centers (AGCs) in Great Britain have expressed frustration at the UK government\u2019s decision to pause plans to relax the rules governing high street slot machine arcades.<\/p>\n

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relaxation of the \u201c80\/20 rule\u201d will not happen in 2025<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The move to shelve liberalizing the regulations means the relaxation of the \u201c80\/20 rule\u201d will not happen in 2025, and as the Guardian reports, \u201ccould be dropped altogether.\u201d<\/p>\n

The status quo means only a maximum 20% of slot machines in AGCs can be category B3, namely terminals that allow stakes of up to \u00a32 ($2.66) with winnings of up to \u00a3500 ($665). The remaining 80% of the slots can be class C or D, machines with a \u00a31 ($1.33) maximum stake for jackpots not exceeding \u00a3100 ($133).<\/p>\n

The UK\u2019s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) cited concerns over the AGC\u2019s treatment of vulnerable players as the reason behind its move.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Unexpected decision<\/h2>\n

According to reports, the Starmer administration was \u201cwidely expected\u201d to allow the booming AGC industry to install more slots offering higher payouts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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wasted floor space and unnecessary power bills<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The AGCs had argued that the 80\/20 rule stifled the vertical growth as most gamblers don\u2019t play the lower-stakes slots, which amount to wasted floor space and unnecessary power bills.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Last May, the DCMS said it was mulling either a new 50\/50 rule or dropping the 80\/20 regulations entirely.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, The<\/em> Guardian<\/em> cited a DCMS letter announcing it was hitting the pause button on changes for 2025<\/a>. While officials didn\u2019t rule out revisiting the plan, they highlighted \u201cconcerns about the strength of protections for vulnerable people\u201d within the AGC vertical.<\/p>\n

A case in point arose in February when the UK Gambling Commission fined Merkur Group UK \u00a395,450 ($126,983) for social responsibility failings at one of the AGCs owned by the German gambling giant Gauselmann Group\u2019s UK subsidiaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The penalty came after a bettor lost \u00a31,981 ($2,635) in November 2023 at a Merkur AGC in Stockport<\/a>, with The<\/em> Guardian <\/em>revealing how \u201cstaff allegedly exploited a vulnerable cancer patient.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clinging to hope<\/h2>\n

Bacta President John Bollom expressed the frustration of members his body represents from the amusements and low-stakes, low-prize gambling arcade sector, but added Bacta remained hopeful the DCMS will revisit the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the minister looks again she will see this reform for what it is \u2013 common sense, safe for players and good for our ailing high streets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Labour MP Beccy Cooper, however, welcomed the pause and called for even more restrictions on AGCs.<\/p>\n

\u201cLocal councils also need more powers to enable them to restrict the number of gambling outlets in local communities,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The post Operators Frustrated as UK Shelves Plans to Relax Retail Slot Machine Rules<\/a> appeared first on Vegas Slots Online News<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The post Operators Frustrated as UK Shelves Plans to Relax Retail Slot Machine Rules appeared first on Vegas Slots Online News. AGC sector unhappy Operators [Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/581"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=581"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/581\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":582,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/581\/revisions\/582"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anselledmont.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}