US Gaming: Consumer Protections Will Be the New Technology Frontier

Beyond operators, no company has the perspective of responsible gaming regulations and application to global gaming markets quite like TransUnion. For nearly two decades, TransUnion has been at the forefront of developing new technologies that enable consumer protection and compliance — without introducing unnecessary friction. The most well-known example of this is TransUnion Affordability Solutions for Gaming in the UK. These reflect our market-leading position in applying identity data to serve a market where we’ve supported operators with ever-evolving affordability requirements implemented by the UK Gambling Commission.

In the US, TransUnion holds a prominent position — providing insights to both operators and regulators around data laws, privacy requirements and consumer protection best practices informed by our global institutional knowledge of responsible gaming.

Since the repeal of Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in May 2018, sports betting in the US has become available across dozens of states. Upon each state launch, a hyper-competitive arena began with operators vying for market share, necessitating investment into technologies to enable player acquisitions at scale.

Six years later, there’s now a market approaching maturity, and with it, a new technology frontier is emerging — this time, focusing on ensuring sustainability and enhancing consumer protections in light of increased scrutiny.

Responsible gaming is a deep and nuanced topic with many countries attempting to memorialize consumer protection as part of their regulatory requirements. The challenge in nearly all global markets is the balance between ensuring consumers are protected without introducing the unnecessary friction they’re hyper-sensitive to — which can drive consumers away from regulated to unregulated providers.

In the US, New Jersey is likely to lead the way (as it did when it sought to repeal PASPA) in enhancing responsible gaming requirements in the Garden State. These will then serve as inspiration or a blueprint for other states to adopt. In turn, US operators have emphatically demonstrated their commitments to protecting players through the announcement of The Responsible Online Gaming Association (ROGA).

However regulations unfold, what’s clear is both operators and regulators understand in this new phase of market maturity, responsible gaming technology is needed to ensure the industry continues to build trust with consumers. To do that, identity data will be as crucial to risk identification in the US market as it has been in numerous other global markets.