Problem gambling mitigation is getting a boost from the UK government’s reform of the National Health Service (NHS) as well as from new initiatives from major banks.

This weekend, the Mirror reported that UK Prime Minister Theresa May planned to instruct Health Secretary Matt Hancock to build more dedicated facilities to address problem gambling behavior. There is currently only one such facility in the UK, the National Problem Gambling Clinic in London’s Fulham area.

Previously, specialist treatment for gambling issues has relied on charitable funding but the new facilities will come courtesy of the government’s planned injection of an additional £20.5b into the NHS by 2023. Around £2.3b of this sum will go toward mental health services.

The UK’s gambling industry-funded GambleAware charity, which helps support the National Problem Gambling Clinic, celebrated the news as a “very welcome development.” Last November, GambleAware announced the commissioning of a second such clinic in Leeds that is expected to open in April. The Leeds facility will eventually assist problem gamblers across the north of the country through a hub-and-spoke model.

Italy’s regulated sports betting market revenue came in just shy of $1.5b in 2018, although the pace of growth slowed dramatically from 2017.

Figures released Monday by Italy’s Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM) gambling regulatory body show the country’s licensed sports betting operators generated revenue of €1.484b in 2018, up 10.8% over 2017’s result. Betting turnover totaled €10.9b, up €1b from 2017.

Last year’s land-based wagering revenue totaled €840m, up around 7% from 2017. Online betting revenue came in just over €643m, a nearly 16% rise over 2017. However, online betting revenue grew by 44.5% in 2017, and that year didn’t have the wind-assist that 2018 enjoyed courtesy of the FIFA World Cup, suggesting that the market may be nearing its peak.

The annual growth figure wasn’t helped by December’s results, which saw overall sports revenue slip 55% year-on-year to €96.4m thanks to a rash of punter-friendly results. Land-based betting was off nearly two-thirds to €49.4m while online betting fell 43% to €47m. Bet365 reclaimed the online betting crown with a 17.3% share, while November’s king Planetwin365 slipped to second with 14.8% and Snaitech ranked third with 11.9%.

Loto Quebec will soon become the third Canadian provincial gambling monopoly to launch an Evolution Gaming-powered live casino offering.

On Monday, the Stockholm-listed Evolution announced that it had reached a deal to supply online casino services to the Espacejeux.com online gambling site of the state-run gambling monopoly in Canada’s second-most populous province. The offering, which is expected to debut this month, will be available across desktop and mobile platforms.

The new live casino offering will be known locally as ‘Casino en direct’ to cater to the province’s French-speaking majority. It will feature six dedicated tables, five of which will operate using the French language, plus four additional tables from Evolution’s live studio in Vancouver.

Loto Quebec’s online product manager Sovanna Phan said the Crown corporation was “thrilled” to be adding live casino to its digital offering, adding that the addition “fits hands in glove with our click-and-mortar strategy to engage with customers both online and face-to-face at our casinos.”

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) knows how to stay at the forefront of gaming regulation, and they’ve proved it once again. In a press release dated January 3, the MGA announced it had launched the first of two phases for its cryptocurrency Sandbox Framework.

In the announcement, the authority noted that in this phase, starting on January 1 and planned to run for 10 months, the MGA will be “accepting applications for the use of DLT [Distributed Ledger Technology] Assets, directly or through third party service providers, by its respective licensees.”

This follows the October revelation from MGA that they would be introducing this Sandbox Framework so they could explore and develop guidelines for the use of cryptocurrencies in the gaming space.

Although the framework is only planned for 10 months, the MGA could choose to extend that period if they feel it needed. The second phase will allow licensees to apply for the use of Innovative Technology Agreements.

When the Supreme Court of the United States struck down the federal betting sports ban last year, all experts expected a torrent of state legislation to follow. Tennessee is proving them right, with a new proposed bill in the works.

LocalMemphis.com reports the Tennessee Sports Gaming Act will give local governments the right to decide if they want sports betting locations in their area. If approved, local communities could “then petition their local government with at least 10% of voters calling for a vote on legalizing betting in their area.”

The bill was put forward by State Representative Rick Staples, a Democrat. Unlike with recently proposed Texas casino bill, this one might actually achieve its goal, as Republican State Senator Brian Kelsey is working on his own version of the bill for the upper house.

In a statement to LocalMemphis, Kelsey said:

The tourism agency in Goa appears to support the idea of land-based casinos. A newly drafted tourism policy prepared by the government looks to create an international gaming cluster that would see existing offshore casinos relocated, as well as additional changes that are designed to boost entertainment activity and draw more tourism to the area.

According to the Business Standard, the proposed legislation would see the Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), a state-run organization that oversees tourism, be redeveloped through the “private sector” and would disengage the corporation from a number of services. The bill is currently open for input and is expected to be addressed by lawmakers on January 16 in a meeting that will be led by Goa’s Tourism Minister, Manohar Ajgaonkar.

The bill would also see a new Goa Tourism Board, which would be directed by the tourism minister. It would take over certain responsibilities currently controlled by the GTDC, as well as some of those controlled by the State Level Marketing and Promotion Committee (SLMPC).

The draft was designed by a private consultant who suggests that there is a need to redevelop the industry through the “vibrant private sector.” The change in policy adds, “Assets such as hotels, buildings, land and immovable assets and so on shall be redeveloped through private sector participation under long-term lease or licencing arrangements, for development or operation and management.”

Anyone who uses Neteller for their payment transactions needs to take note. The online services provider has announced that they are making changes to their policies, which will become effective as of March 13. It’s likely that a large number users of the platform don’t find the changes very appealing.

Neteller has become one of the most-used methods for conducting transactions on gambling and casino-related sites around the world. It has begun emailing its users to inform them of the upcoming changes and states that certain wallets will see additional monthly fees tacked on based on the frequency of the wallet’s use. Additionally, some accounts could be suspended or restricted if the company determines that there is suspected criminal activity, such as money laundering, occurring through the accounts.

The changes won’t affect only Neteller, but users of the company’s sister operation, Skrill, as well. Skrill has also begun to inform its users of the changes, which will be implemented on the same date. Both companies are owned by the Paysafe Group, a multi-national online payments firm.

Opening an account with Neteller is free and will remain so going forward. However, a monthly service fee of $5 – or the equivalent in the user’s currency – will be assessed if the user doesn’t log in or make a transaction once every 12 months. The fee will be automatically deducted from the user’s available balance in the Neteller account.