G4 cannot stand their own e-gambling code of conduct up to the fact they are happy to get into the action with eCOGRA in my opinion. See for yourself.
G4 and Ecogra Alliance BackgroundeCOGRA Alliance With G4Top
G4 executive, Pieter Remmers says that partnering with eCOGRA dramatically extends the beneficial reach of his organisation`s code.
Remmers Said "These 51 first rate Seal casinos represent a very significant share of the online casino gambling sector, and the real enforcement that is part of the eCOGRA system makes for effective application,` he says.
Although we have other partnerships in process, this is the big one for us, because eCOGRA will offer brand recognition and allow us to contribute to their sites. It is the first step in getting their members to come aboard. We have also held discussions with other groups, like the Interactive Gaming Council and certain large online poker networks, and those will continue to be our focus in the short term.
Bill Galston OBE, who is both an independent director of eCOGRA and Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Gamcare, commented `We are extremely pleased with this alliance and the efforts that will be made by the Seal operators in the area of social responsibility."
Issued by Andrew Beveridge, CEO - eCOGRA
G4 Responsible e-Gaming Code of Practice (PDF) G4 e-gambling code of practise. "The following Code of Practise recognises that e-gambling is a specific and distinctly different form of gambling from land based gambling industries.
The Code is to be used as a "guide" only and must be matched to the local legislation applying to the relevant jurisdiction"
2) REALITY CHECKS
It is vital that, where a game allows continuos, interactive and rapid gambling without a natural break, there should be mechanisms implemented that help the customer to monitor their spend and amount of time they have played so that they can make consious decisions on where to stop or continue.
As well as a default sesion limit which will close a game after ONE HOUR of continuos play, the following are also recommended.
a) A clearly visible clock which displays the time within the players time zone should be visible on the screen at all times.
b) The currency unit of the amount wagered should be clearly displayed on the games screen as well as the denomination of each credit.
Counters should be used to inform the player of the time they have been playing. This could be a display that pops up every 30 minutes and should be clearly visible to the player.
Where a game allows the player to choose different amounts per credit, this option should involve having to come out of the game in order to change credit size. This will help to avoid the possibility of customers impulsively increasing their stakes in order to chase losses.
It should be possible for the customer to place a limit on the amount that they can bet/play for a specified period. If the player would like to increase this limit the operator has to be contacted. It must take at least seven days to effect this increase after the notice was sent. If the customer would like to decrease this limit, it will take effect immediately.
No game should be quicker than 3 seconds between plays, even in "turbo" mode.
The operator should seek guidance from the regulator on which games would require the implementation of suitable reality checks.
There is no popup on ecogra sealed casinos to tell a player they have been playing for half an hour.
There are games in ecogra sealed
Microgaming powered casinos that do not have a 3 second gap between all games.
7. CUSTOMER LED SESSION LIMITS
a) To assist the customer to control their gambling and protect against the possibility of continuous rapid gambling without a break, they should have the option to set a session duration limit. This limit will determine how long the player will be able to play on a game until there is a break.
This should apply to any game, both online gambling and interactive wagering, that involves rapid continuous gaming. G4 can advise on games that would require session limits.
b) The minimum time limit available should be no more than 10 minutes.
c) The player should be able to set the session time limit as a default for all games.
d) If a session duration limit is not set by the player then a default of one hour should be the maximum default time for all players.
e) When the session duration has expired and on completion of the last game, a message should appear to inform the player that their time has elapsed and if they wish to continue they will have to re-enter the game from the menu screen. At that point they should have to acknowledge the message by clicking on it.
The game's screen will then close and the player will be brought back into the game's menu screen so they have to click on the desired game if they wish to continue.
This process should take no less than 10 seconds. The fact that they have to make a conscious decision to continue will help the player to keep track of their gambling spend and time.
I have not seen any ecogra sealed casino that has a default setting of 1 hour after which the game will close and the punter has to then re-enter the game via the casino menu.
Conclusion As the G4 Code of Practise is just a guide, it is pretty worthless, especially if they themselves get into bed with a firm that has sealed 50+ casinos that do not adhere to 2 of the recommended sections of the G4 code of e-gaming practise.
It is really not on. I am an advocate of fair gaming and responsible player initiatives. However, the proprietors of such initiatives should be spotlessly clean regarding following their own guidelines.
It is quite apparent that
G4 cannot stand for their own code of practise when it comes to
eCOGRA to add to the farce which is
eCOGRA flouting their own egap rule 113
