Is Deal Or No Deal Illegal Gambling?

UK viewers were shocked this week when they learned that some of their favourite shows might be taken off the air - as they may constitute illegal gambling.

The UK Gambling Commission will begin an investigation into the legality of such top-rated TV shows such as Deal or No Deal and Red or Black? after concerns were raised that these games had no elements of skill involved.

The Gambling Commission told the producers of Channel 4's Deal or No Deal that their £250,000 jackpot games could be considered a breach of UK gambling laws since no skill was required by players to win the prizes.

The Daily Mail reports that other games are also on the radar, including Simon Cowell's Red or Black?, which is shown on ITV and presented by Ant and Dec.

Attempts to revive Bruce Forsyth's Play your Cards Right may have to take a back seat for the moment until the outcome of the Gambling Commission's probe are made public.

According to legal experts, Channel 4 would need to make significant changes to the show in order to make it 'legal' in the eyes of the law. These may include moving the show to a post-9pm time slot, as well as restricting the types of advertising shown during breaks. If Channel 4 feels that these changes are too consuming - both time and financial wise - they may scrap the show altogether.

Concerns over the Glamourisation of Gambling

The Daily Mail quotes a government source as saying that UK gambling regulators are afraid of the way these shows 'glamourise' gambling.

"The Gambling Commission does not seem to think that there is any skill element in the show [Deal or No Deal]," said the source. "Even though at the beginning of the show, contestants do not have to stake any of their own money, the argument is that once they've picked a box, which could contain a lot of cash, in subsequent rounds, they are in effect gambling with their own money."

Show bosses are stunned by the intention of the Gambling Commission to probe their shows, and the belief that Deal or No Deal is 'illegal gambling'.  They believe that the rules that were created to control illegal betting and casino establishments should not be applied to television entertainment.

"This is an absolutely ridiculous state of affairs," one senior broadcasting source was quoted as saying. "The Gambling Commission has no right to be poking its nose into what are harmless television programmes. How can anyone regard Deal or No Deal as gambling?"