Now that Ofcom,
the UK's media watchdog, has relaxed some of its guidelines, British consumers
will be able to enjoy a totally new type of casino play at home.
NetPlay
TV will be launching the UK's first interactive gambling channel on terrestrial
television. Ofcom has changed the classification of some types of television
gambling to a type of television shopping.
According to the
new classification system, transactional gambling "windows" that ask users to
pay money to take part in gambling such as bingo or roulette, or to place bets
are a type of teleshopping. The newly relaxed rules also make it legal for
public service broadcast channels to show television shopping programming,
including some types of televised gambling programming between midnight and six
am. Those channels are ITV1, Channel 4, Five and S4C1.
In the past,
British TV's Channel Five has used NetPlay TV to provide service for its
Eurotelemillions Daily SuperDraw, but NetPlay isn't revealing which media
partner they'll use to launch their SuperCasino programme with. Adding to the
confusion are confirmed reports that Channel Five has signed with PartyGaming
for branded online casino services.
NetPlay is moving
to increase its power in the marketplace as a whole, seeking retail partners,
television partners and more online partnerships. Martin Higginson, chief
executive at NetPlay, said that statistics show that a live roulette wheel
attracts six times the action of a digital roulette wheel which lacks a live
dealer. As a result, televised gambling may have many advantages over online
gambling. Moreover, it may attract a different audience which is not as internet
savvy.
