Conditions And Restrictions

Under the Gaming Act 1968, local authorities have the power to limit the number of AWP machines in a premises on a case-by-case basis, but cannot impose blanket limits on numbers of machines. From autumn 2007, the new Gambling Act decrees that alcohol-licensed premises are automatically entitled to two AWP machines, provided they comply with a simple notification procedure.

As a result of amendments made to Schedule 9 of the Gaming Act by the Licensing Act 2003, previous requirements that AWP machines must be located in a bar have been removed. That said, when deciding where to locate machines, they should be positioned in an area where they can be supervised. The Gambling Act 2005, outlaws children under 18 from playing AWP machines with a maximum prize of more than £ 8.

Gambling Act 2005

When implemented, the Gambling Act 2005 will replace most existing gambling law. It will extend to the whole of Great Britain, but not generally to Northern Ireland. It puts in place more comprehensive regulations and creates a new independent regulatory body, the Gambling Commission. The target date for implementation of the Gambling Act 2005 is autumn 2007.

The Act has three objectives:

• To prevent gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder, or being used to support crime.
• To ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way.
• To protect children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

 

The Gambling Commission will be independent of Government, and will issue operating licences to providers of gambling. Its remit will encompass most of the main forms of commercial gambling, including casinos, bingo, betting, gaming machines and larger charity lotteries; it will also include those providing gambling through the internet and mobile phones.

One of the major implications of the new Act is the expansion of the casino business. The Gambling Bill allows applications to be made to open casinos in all local authority areas. Three categories of casino premises will be allowed (small, large and regional) depending on the size of the customer area. Casinos will be allowed to install more gaming machines than under the present law, but their numbers will be capped. Only regional casinos will be allowed to install what have become known as ‘Las Vegas’ style machines, which have the potential to offer unlimited prizes.

Other than a new requirement for local authorities to license gambling premises and issue a range of permits under the act, there are few direct changes which affect pub AWP machines.

Issues Affecting Machine Income

Over the last few years, income from pub AWP machines has been under pressure from the growing popularity of other forms of gambling. Many hardcore gamers have switched from pub AWPs to other ways of gambling which offer higher payouts. The result has been an overall decline in the amount of money gambled in pub AWP machines and a consequent reduction in machine income for many licensees. Though there are calls to increase payouts of pub AWP machines to make them more attractive to gamers, the attraction of other forms of gambling remains very strong. Some of these other forms of gambling are discussed below.

Fobts

Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) are a recent phenomenon which have been installed in betting shops, and have become very popular. FOBTs have ‘touch-screen’ terminals and look similar to quiz machines found in pubs and clubs. They offer a number of games, with roulette being the most popular, and maximum prizes of £ 500, which far exceed that of traditional AWP machines. Many bookmakers claim that revenue generated from FOBTs now exceeds traditional over-the-counter gambling. Pubs located close to betting shops are likely to feel the impact more than those located further away.