Poker Room.com's chief Patrick Selin takes problem gambling in the
booming online poker sector, and his responsibilities as an operator
seriously, unveiling new initiatives this week to deal with the problem.
CSRs at the operation are to be sent on psychological training courses
dealing with aspects of gambling addiction to better equip them to
identify gamblers in need of help at an early stage. And plans are
well advanced to monitor betting patterns and even counsel potentially
addictive gamblers.
Problem gambling bodies are concerned at the rise in gambling addiction
in the UK, with one charity that works with gambling addicts claiming
a 56 per cent rise in patients - nearly half addicted to Internet
betting. Recent surveys show that in 2003, 2.9 million Britons staked
£3million a day on all types of Internet gaming, and Ladbrokes
predicts a six-fold increase in the number of gamblers this year.
The biggest new customers, according to online casinos are women who
previously never ventured into a casino due to social pressures.