The twentieth edition of the Symposium on Gambling held at the University of Hohenheim in Germany presented a look into the gambling regulator Glücksspielbehörde’s (GGL) current and future gambling research practices.
Attending the meeting was GGL Board Member Ronald Benter, who spoke about the importance of well-rounded research into the gambling sector at a time when the State Treaty on Gambling is being evaluated.
He said: “Scientific findings are the basis of political and social debates. The need for further regulations must result from facts and figures. An essential part of our tasks as a regulatory authority is therefore the promotion and initiation of gambling research. Despite the comparatively short existence of our authority, we have already achieved a lot here.”
The GGL was first established shortly after the State Treaty on Gambling marked the official market launch in Germany on 1 July, 2021, bringing Germany’s new federal laws on online gambling and sports betting into power.
Since its inception, the GGL has gone on to commission several gambling studies with a combined value of €1.39m, with further studies already being planned.
For example, a study on gambling advertising was awarded to media research company Eye Square in December last year after a tender process, requiring the agency to cooperate with Germany’s 16 federal states.
In addition, a study is on its way investigating the black market prominence in the country – something that gambling group Entain has called for in the past.
The GGL also placed an emphasis on the importance of open dialogue as a core principle to its approach: “We listen to all points of view and interests before we make our decisions.”
