Corporate social responsibility; three words combined that the gambling industry is beginning to accept as an essential part of its vernacular far more often these days – and rightly so. They come with a weight of responsibility that cannot be shirked, shaken or shifted and there are no excuses for any company involved in gaming for failing to understand their full implications.

Reassuringly, the US sports betting sector appears to have made the first steps towards talking seriously about the issue, as evidenced by the American Gaming Association’s recent study on problem gambling conducted by the Mellman Group. It found that the majority of Americans are able to gamble responsibly, but with the caveat that more research is needed into the subject.

The sports wagering industry, perhaps mindful of the spectre of future litigation arising from problem gambling, is at least considering addressing its responsibilities. And it is doing so at a time where legal sports betting in the US is at best embryonic, rather than tackling the issue further down the line.

Is that enough at this stage? Paul Buck, Chief Executive of Epic Risk Management, a leading independent gambling harm-minimization consultancy in the UK and Ireland, believes more can be done now. It’s a view that he will expand upon at the inaugural Betting on Sports America conference in April as part of a dedicated panel which poses the vital question: Tackling problem gambling – what is effective?