UK’s BetBlocker Software to Be Introduced to USA

For many years now, the BetBlocker software has been active in the United Kingdom and across Europe. A free tool to utilise, it can be installed on as many devices as a user likes, giving the opportunity to block access to over 15,700 gambling websites offering their services to the UK market. And such popularity it has achieved with those looking to reduce or eliminate gambling from their lives altogether, that it is to be introduced to the growing United States gambling market. And this comes about, in part, thanks to the DraftKings platform.

With BetBlocker becoming active in the USA, players there will be given a selection of options to utilise in order to ensure they are partaking in responsible gambling. And this serves as an ideal way for such responsibility to be central to any player’s gambling activity.

What Is the Influence of DraftKings Behind This Move?

How is it that DraftKings has been partially responsible for the move to bring BetBlocker to the U.S.? Well, the online sportsbook, which last year made a $20 billion (£16.5 billion) offer to acquire the UK sports betting company Entain, announced that it has entered into an intercontinental collaboration with the BetBlocker company. This, it said, was done as a way of heightening the awareness of responsible gambling, providing access to BetBlocker software for U.S. gamblers. DraftKings noted this as being “a first” when speaking of the global gaming industry.

Anyone choosing to make use of the BetBlocker software will be able to set restrictions on their own gaming activities, and this can occur across all of their devices, if they so wish. As with the software in the UK, it will be a free-to-use option across the USA. The restrictions imposed will apply themselves to thousands of gaming sites accessible to American players, whether those sites are regulated or not.

“BetBlocker’s contributions to safer play are commendable and DraftKings is pleased to team up with this enterprising and disruptive not-for-profit that is advancing responsible gaming in a comprehensive and consumer-friendly way”,

said Senior Director of Responsible Gaming for DraftKings, Chrissy Thurmond. She proceeded to say that the vision of BetBlocker is shared by the DraftKings brand, and that a “warm welcome” is offered up to the software company, as they set out building a footprint across North America.

How BetBlocker Works

BetBlocker was developed in the United Kingdom, coming from an initial concept that was discussed in the second half of 2017. It came about as a response to the increased number of complaints received from customers regarding responsible gambling in the country. Duncan Gracie, manager of BetBlocker, said that he had spent time seeking out a place where all those concerns could be directed to and software could be utilised to help, only to find that they were all commercial projects.

Yet because people suffering from gambling issues are usually already having troubles financially, Gracie believed that asking them to pay for assistance with this is detrimental. Therefore, BetBlocker was thought up, providing free software, meaning that people who are already struggling with gambling addiction don’t have to part with more money that they potentially cannot afford.

By the beginning of 2018, functioning desktop versions of the application were launched, and, after a year-long challenging period of adapting the software to suit, a mobile version was launched. It remains as the first and only no-cost tool to allow individuals to set restrictions on their gambling activity across all personal devices. Users simply need to download the software, which is done anonymously, meaning that none of their personal data is taken and/or stored.

Chief of Safer Gambling Partnerships for BetBlocker, Pedro Romero, said that he is “thrilled to have the support” coming from a sports betting and gaming giant in DraftKings. Through it, the company’s software will be able to expand outside of the UK and Europe, assisting with people wanting to take control of their gambling activity in the United States and Canada.

“We’ve been impressed with DraftKings’ leadership in responsible gaming, and we are grateful for their collaboration and financial support as we look to expand awareness of safer play technology”,

Romero said. He finished off by stating that he hoped other operators would follow the example that DraftKings had set, so as to ensure that all players have the required knowledge and tools to be able to bet responsibly.

DraftKings Responsible Gambling Focus Via S.E.R.V.E.S.

DraftKings is committed to creating inclusive and responsible pathways for people to build, create, imagine and innovate. It does through its own S.E.R.V.E.S. corporate social responsibility program. The letters stand for Service, Equity, Responsible Gaming, Vitality, Entrepreneurship, and Sports. Through this, it aims to collaborate with non-profit organisations, such as BetBlocker, so as to provide staff training, education and resources for consumers.

In 2019, the BetBlocker gambling app was approved as an official charity within the United Kingdom. This highlighted the fact that the software provides a service that a large number of people are able to benefit from. And the hope is there that the U.S. market will also be able to benefit in just as grand a way, if not more so.

Yet with such a large portion of people wanting to use it in the UK and Europe, the project needed to acquire some funding from somewhere. Either they could go against their original ethos and start charging people to download and use the BetBlocker software or find other revenue streams to utilise. The company chose the latter, which has led to various partnerships in recent years. This includes a unison with L&L Europe in 2021 to provide a Dutch-language version of the app for the regulated market coming to life in the Netherlands. A German version of the software has also been created.

Through those partnerships, BetBlocker has not only been able to maintain its availability to players, but to enhance the service provided by it as well. And the fact that DraftKings has now signed on to help introduce the service to an American audience can only mean bigger and better things for the software brand.