The Swedish government online gambling monopoly Svenska Spel expanded
its poker site availability to 24 hours this week, with spokesmen
explaining that this would provide a safer gambling setting for Swedish
pokerheads.
In an unusual but thoughtful move, the poker site will also introduce
mandatory five minute toilet breaks every half hour to give gamblers
an opportunity to pause and reflect on their play as well as attending
to Nature's needs.
The Boss-powered site opened in March this year and already claims
to have 100 000 registered players, although it is not known how many
of these are active.
With the limited hours of operation that were initially part of its
operational practice, management discovered that many players would
move away to other and more readily available poker sites when the
Svenska Spel operation closed for the day. Spokesmen explained that
Svenska Spel management believe that the Swedish site is much safer
for gamblers than other sites due to the stringent regulations enforced
to guard against problem and underaged gambling. The decision was
therefore made to extend the availability of poker play on the site
for the full 24 hours.