The event opened with a speech by lawyer Paulo Horn, president of the Gaming and Lotteries Commission of the OAB-RJ, who provided context on the effects of the lack of regulation in recent years.
“We went six years without any rules. What happened? A proliferation of what already existed, people exploiting the market irresponsibly all over the world. Some simply put games on the streets without even paying employees. That’s why the state must be present, ensuring that gaming operators fulfill the offers they make to consumers. There must be a prize plan,” he stated.
Horn also criticized the role of Caixa Econômica Federal, highlighting the damages caused by the state monopoly.
“The product was so bad that it was impossible to work with. It was so poor that those who suffered the most were the Caixa Econômica Federal lottery agents and our newsstand partners who sold these products,” he pointed out.
During the panel, regulatory law expert Daniel Homem de Carvalho reinforced the importance of self-regulation and competition as instruments for market protection.
“In a monopoly system, it’s easy. Without competition, you will naturally offer a worse product. Competition is the best solution for the market, whether to counteract illegal operators or to ensure that consumers recognize the best gaming options,” he argued.
Daniel advocated for the industry to take an active role in regulation.
“It’s better for the market to take the initiative in self-regulation and communicate with the government: ‘Here is our control platform, facial recognition, betting limits per account.’” He added: “Illegal gambling will continue to exist. How do we solve this? With competition. Legal sites must attract bettors.”
A clinical perspective on risk behavior
Psychiatrist Marcelo Ribeiro, responsible for a specialized clinic at Unifesp, brought a clinical perspective on risk behavior.
“There is science behind not only gambling but also the broader technology market that influences our behavior. Technology addiction is a relevant issue, much like shopping addiction. People get hooked on online stores, adding products to their carts, and at that moment, dopamine is released, creating a sense of pleasure. This mechanism is similar to gambling and technology addiction, forming an endless cycle,” he explained.
Public perception of gambling as entertainment
Filipe Rodrigues, founder of the Associação Jogo Positivo, presented data from a study on Brazilian perceptions of gambling as entertainment. One key finding highlighted that the public still does not fully understand gambling as a leisure activity.
“The average Brazilian does not completely perceive gambling as entertainment. This is extremely valuable information, especially for operators when designing their communication campaigns,” he noted.
He also emphasized the role of institutional communication in this process.
“The Brazilian Secretariat for Prizes and Betting (SPA), along with other regulators, must incorporate strategies that help their target audience understand gambling as a form of entertainment,” he explained.
The need for cultural adaptation in responsible gaming campaigns
Jennifer Shatley, an executive at the Responsible Online Gaming Alliance (ROGA), an organization representing major U.S. betting operators, highlighted the need for cultural adaptation in responsible gaming awareness campaigns.
“I worked for several years in Japan while they were considering legalizing gambling. We all knew it was important to start discussing Responsible Gaming with the Japanese population before casinos were approved. But when we conducted research, we found that the concept itself did not make sense within their culture,” she said.
Jennifer explained that the organization allocated $20 million for research in the U.S. and emphasized the importance of that investment.
“We want to create best practices and ensure that all of them are evidence-based. I cannot stress enough how important this is. If we are going to invest time, resources, and money into these practices, we must ensure they are truly effective. In the Responsible Gaming space, we sometimes see policies that sound like good ideas but don’t work in practice.”
She continued: “Once implemented, some initiatives may have no effect—or worse, the opposite effect of what we intended. We’ve developed programs that we believed would yield positive results, only to see the outcome turn out entirely different. That’s why we focus on evidence to refine these initiatives and make gaming more responsible.”
Jennifer stressed that Brazil must adapt its messaging to local realities.
“We need to tailor messages to our culture. Even age can make a difference. The way you communicate with a 25-year-old is not the same as with a 50-year-old,” she stated.
She also emphasized that technology and human intervention must go hand in hand.
“Technology can identify risks, but humans must develop the engagement strategy. What messages will you use to motivate behavioral change? Technology detects risk, but we need to recognize the triggers that indicate when someone is struggling with problematic gambling behavior,” she concluded.
Source: GMB
