Pieter Remmers is a veteran in the area of responsible gaming, consultancy and training of gambling industry professionals. He has been involved in projects with the gambling industry already since 1989. Pieter started his career as the director of an outpatient clinic for addiction problems of Jellinek in the early 80’s.
Peter is one of the key speakers and moderator of the RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING panel. We’ve managed to catch up with him to get a sneak preview of his presentation.
EEG: Responsible gaming has always been a huge factor to determine the evolution of any online or land-based gambling operator. How do you feel the industry is evolving in terms of transparency? Are operators taking Responsible Gambling more seriously now than let’s say 5 years ago?
Peter: I think the industry is slowly moving forwards. That is not only the fault, if I may say so, of the industry, but it has also to do with the position of the regulators in Europe.
On the one hand they claim that Responsible Gaming and Corporate Social Responsibility are very important, but on the other hand not a lot in this area has been regulated so far. The industry in general is following the ‘rules of the game’, follow what the regulator tells them to do. A more pro-active operators policy is much more needed in the (near) future and I hope that operators will stand up and recognize that being pro-active is absolutely necessary to stay ahead of the competition.
EEG: Eastern European countries that have recently regulated their markets and started issuing licenses for foreign operators have inspired their responsible gambling laws from European experts. Do you think that by adding some social factors that can influence these methods of implementation can make these markets more efficient and transparent?
Peter: Adding social factors are absolutely essential for the present market and the future one. It is not a matter of making as much profit as possible in the short term, but it is about a sustainable industry in the long run. CSR and RG are absolutely part of that. I think that Eastern European Regulators, but also the ones from other parts in the EU, should pay more attention to the content, not only to protect the consumer, but also to take into account the responsibility of the player him or herself.
EEG: Is the Eastern European society aware of the dangers of dealing with operators that are not adopting a responsible gambling conduct? What can governments do about such acts?
Peter: It would surprise me if the Eastern European society is not aware of these dangers. The question is though, how far do we go? The ‘simple’ solution is to regulate as much as possible and to block and fine operators that do not cooperate, but the essence is, how can we deal with an open market and responsible players on that market. Auditing and certifying the CSR and RG activities by an independent organization could help with that.
Peter’s company, Assissa Consultancy Europe works on responsible gaming policies and programmes in a number of countries i.e. Netherlands, South Africa, Germany, Switzerland, Luxemburg, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Malaysia, Singapore, Canada, Malta, Sweden and others. Besides Pieter is a consultant world wide for as well as the gambling and betting industry land based and online, casinos, slot machine halls and lotteries and for regulators or other governmental bodies.He works / worked with companies like: GTech/Lottomatica, Holland Casino, Unibet, Sun International, IGT, Svenska Spel, Gauselmann/Merkur, Betsson, Krijco, Fair Play Casinos, Staatsloterij, Lotto NL, Casino 2000,Cogetech, Betfair, National Lottery and many more.
He is also a member of the Executive Committee and serves as secretary general / conference organizer of the European Association for the Study of Gambling (EASG). He is also a shareholder/board member of HANDS ( Human Assistance Network for Daily Support, telephone counseling services). In 2003 he was the initiator of G4 (Global Gambling Guidance Group). G4 deals with an International Accreditation System on responsible gaming for the gambling, betting and lottery industry land based and online. At present he is the Chair of the Board of G4.
Since 2009 he is a member of the Responsible Gaming Committee of IMGL (International Masters of Gaming Law). Since 2014 is a also member of IAGA (International Association of Gaming Advisors).
He is also a member of the Spielerschutzkommission (Responsible Gaming Commission) of the Gauselmann /Merkur Group, Germany, a member of the Advisory Council of the Gaming Authority in the Netherlands and a member of the International Advisory Panel of the Ministry of Health in Singapore.
Pieter is a very regular speaker at many conference all over the world. He is also freelance correspondent for the magazine European Casinos The Elite and the Casino Inside magazine (Romania). At present he is very much involved in the development and carry out of online education programmes (e-learning) on problem gambling and responsible gaming and responsible gaming solutions to support players’ gaming decisions and online treatment modules.”
If you would like to get the unique opportunity to ask all your important questions and learn first-hand details about RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING, be sure to attend the Eastern European Gaming Summit. For 8th consecutive year on 23 – 24 November 2015, Inter Expo Center in Sofia, Bulgaria will bring together under one roof world’s leading figures and companies from the industry to present and outline current market developments and future trends with global vision and focus on the Eastern European market.
Visit the EEGS website here.
