Kindred harmful gambling revenue back to 2020 levels after Q1 dip

The share of Kindred Group’s gross winnings revenue from high-risk players hit 4.3 per cent in the second quarter of Q2, equal to the same figure from Q4 2020, but slightly above the 3.9 per cent recorded in Q1.

These figures were released by Kindred as part of its ‘Journey towards zero’, where it aims to reach zero per cent of revenue from harmful gambling by the end of 2023, reporting on its progress on a quarterly basis till then.

In comments accompanying the report, the company’s CEO Henrik Tjärnström stated: “During the past quarter we have continued to see a positive and constructive dialogue across the industry in terms of achieving a more sustainable gambling market.

“Ensuring that the discussion continues to take place and that it is fact-based, is vital if we are to achieve the ambition we have set.”

Acknowledging the slight increase in high-risk gambling revenue as an “expected fluctuation”, Mr Tjärnström stated, “we remain dedicated and focused on our journey towards zero”.

Despite the increase, it seems Kindred’s intervention measures are becoming consistently more effective, as its improvement effect after the intervention has increased quarterly in both periods since Q4 when the results were first released.

Kindred’s head of responsible gaming and research Maris Catania, explained how the harmful revenue figures are calculated, stating the operator has invested heavily in developing technologies “to detect and prevent problem gambling”.

“We use our knowledge to create a digital fingerprint of our customers’ behaviour”, she stated, which “allows us to monitor, detect and follow up on problem activities”.

Using this, the company’s player monitoring system seeks to detect the early signs of problem gambling.

This system, according to Ms Catania, is why it seemed like harmful revenues fell in Q1, as Kindred launched an updated version of its player protection system which was more behaviourally based rather than financially based.

“For example, a financial indicator would be an increase in the deposits, whereas a behavioural indicator would be a customer who is constantly looking at the responsible gambling page and not taking action.”

Looking to the future, addressing the long-term progress of the company’s scheme, Ms Catania insists this quarter’s results show just how committed Kindred is to its ‘Journey to zero’ aspirations.

“We will see individual quarters show an increase, such as this one, as we have communicated before”, she said, “but the long-term trajectory is expected to see a decrease in numbers.

“I would like to emphasise that this is not just a tick-a-box exercise for us, and this commitment doesn’t only apply to the Responsible Gambling team. We can only make changes is if we work together with different departments.”