Suzanne Davies moderated a panel session entitled “How SSBTs are changing the face of betting shop business” at SBC Events Betting on Football Conference on 4 May 2017. Her panel (pictured above, with Suzanne) were:

• Howard Chisholm, MD, Chisholm Bookmakers & Director, Bookmakers Technology Consortium
• John Pettit, MD – UK & Ireland, Best Gaming Technology
• Predrag Popovic, Director, Fincore
• Jamie Maskey, Commercial Director, OPTIMA

The session covered a wide range of topics relating to self-service betting terminals, including evolution of SSBT technology and content, the “build or buy platform” debate, discussion whether SSBTs are a substitute for OTC revenues and the extent to which new custom is being attracted by SSBTs.

Note: Section 235(1) of the Gambling Act 2005 defines “gaming machine” as meaning “a machine which is designed or adapted for use by individuals to gamble (whether or not it can also be used for other purposes)”. Section 235(2) contains a number of exemptions from that definition, including “(c) a machine is not a gaming machine by reason only of the fact that it is designed or adapted for use to bet on future real events”. As a consequence, an SSBT, through which people place bets on real (not virtual) events, is not considered to be a gaming machine. However, it should be noted that the real event must be a future event at the time the SSBT is used, meaning that betting on pre-recorded activities, where the result is already known, is not exempt.