Entain targets video games and esports with new RG expansion plans
Entain Foundation launches ‘Mind Your Game’ initiative to support gaming disorder and social media educational initiative
Entain has launched a new ‘Mind Your Game’ initiative aimed at widening its responsible gambling (RG) footprint to include greater support for video gaming and esports players at potential risk of harm.
The Entain Foundation will play a primary role in extending current RG work to these so-called interactive players throughout the UK and Europe.
‘Mind Your Game’ aims to provide players and their families with educational information on mental health issues faced by gamers, as well as tips and strategies to reduce potential harm and signposting to support.
The initiative was developed with additional support from Kindbridge, one of Entain’s three RG partners targeting video gaming and esports players.
In addition, Mind Your Game includes a series of educational videos available on YouTube entitled Skin Gambling, Esports Betting, Spot the Problem and Seek Help.
The foundation is also sponsoring a social media educational initiative to raise awareness of potential addiction.
Entain’s other RG partners, EPIC Risk Management and the Counter-Strike Professional Players’ Association, will work to provide education and support for people at risk of developing online addition and gaming disorder under the new umbrella programme.
It follows the inaugural partnership agreement between the three organisations in February and forms part of Entain’s sustainability charter, which strives to promote responsible gambling, while also investing in people and communities in this area.
Entain has pledged to invest more than £100m into the Entain Foundation by 2025 to support this goal, having previously recruited Dr Mark Griffiths, a professor of behavioural addiction and psychology as a principal adviser.
Addressing the firm’s RG ambitions, Entain director of safer gambling and regulation Grainne Hurst said: “Our business is all about understanding and meeting the needs of customers, which means offering the most entertaining experiences whilst doing everything we can to protect them.
“At the core of our approach to sustainability is our belief that delivering the highest possible levels of player safety and protection is the best way to guarantee our long-term success,” Hurst added.