Consultant forecasts good and bad news in the offing on FOBTs
There will be good news and bad news for operators when the government releases its findings on a review of gaming machines, also known as fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs), according to industry consultant Steve Donoughue.
The good news, Donoughue forecast at the Westminster eForum seminar on Britain's gambling sector held in London on the first day of the Cheltenham Festival last week, is that the call for the maximum stake on B2 gaming machines to be slashed from the current level of £100 to £2 will be dismissed. The bad news, though, is that the topmost stake will come down "to £10 or £20".
"That will destroy the machines market and mean up to 2,000 betting shops will close,” said Donoughue, who provides the secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Betting and Gaming Group, which is not to be confused with the Fixed Odds Betting Terminals All-Party Parliamentary Group that has campaigned for the drastic reduction.
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