UKGC Withholds Evolution Studio Inspection Data

Article Content

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has withheld information regarding inspections of Evolution Gaming’s live casino studios, stating that disclosure would prejudice its ability to regulate the industry effectively.

The decision came in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request dated 31 July 2023, which asked whether the UKGC conducts physical inspections of the studios and requested copies of any related inspection reports.

In its response, the Commission confirmed that it does hold information within the scope of the request but is exempting it from release under Section 31 of the FOIA, which relates to law enforcement and regulatory functions.

The UKGC's Stated Process

Before addressing the refusal, the UKGC outlined its standard procedure for ensuring game fairness and integrity. The regulator does not directly test or approve games itself. Instead, it sets the rules through its Remote Technical Standards (RTS).

Under licence condition 2.3.1, gambling software operators like Evolution are required to:

• Comply with the UKGC's RTS.
• Use independent, third-party approved test houses to check their products against these standards.
• Submit the game and the corresponding test report to the Commission before the game is released to the public.

This system places the onus on operators to prove their compliance through accredited, independent verification, with the UKGC acting as the ultimate authority on standards and enforcement.

Why The Information Was Withheld

The Commission argued that releasing specific details about its assessment process, including inspection reports and techniques, would undermine its regulatory effectiveness. It stated that disclosure could allow operators to anticipate the regulator's methods.

"Disclosure... could lead to potentially non-compliant licenses altering their behaviour specifically to meet the Commission’s standards purely for assessment purposes," the UKGC explained in its response. "This in turn may impact on the Commission’s function of ascertaining a gambling operator’s fitness to carry out gambling activities."

Essentially, the regulator believes that keeping its exact compliance and assessment techniques confidential is crucial for carrying out authentic checks and ensuring operators are consistently compliant, not just when they know they are being watched.

Significance for Consumers

The decision highlights a fundamental tension between public transparency and regulatory integrity. While consumers may desire access to inspection reports for direct assurance about the fairness of live casino games, the UKGC's position is that such transparency would create loopholes that could be exploited.

The regulator concluded that the public interest is better served by withholding the information to preserve the robustness of its compliance processes. For players, this means trusting that the confidentiality of the UKGC's methods is a necessary component of the system designed to protect them.

The response confirms that a system of checks exists, involving third-party test houses and oversight from the Commission, but the specific evidence and methods used to assess major operators like Evolution will remain confidential.