Before starting, it is necessary to point out two different concepts that can lead to confusion: gaming and gambling. The former refers to all video games and their different variants, while the latter covers all games whose main factor is chance, while their purpose is to earn a profit, mostly financial, and they are aimed exclusively at people who have reached the age of majority. Thus, the characteristics of gambling can be divided into three areas: chance, money and competition.
Once their main characteristics have been delimited, it is necessary to indicate that the main difference between both modalities is that in gambling, it is mainly expected to obtain a pecuniary benefit, while in gaming no reward is obtained at a strictly monetary level. Another difference would be the target audience, since, unlike gaming (regardless of the system of classification of video games into suitable groups), gambling is only functional for people of legal age. Finally, it should be noted that the main difference between both modalities is the jurisdiction and regulation within the normative framework. Although both categories are subject to regulatory requirements, the gambling modality finds its regulatory presence reinforced due to the fact that its main purpose is to invest or put at stake a monetary content that may generate a risk for the player.
A clear example of its regulation in Spain can be found in Law 13/2011, of May 27, on the regulation of gambling, as well as in the Royal Decree on Commercial Communications of Gambling Activities. The former established the regulatory framework for gambling activities at the state level, with the main objective of guaranteeing the safeguarding of various public interests, including the prevention of addictive behavior, the protection of the rights of minors and other especially vulnerable groups and, in general, the protection of consumers.
For its part, the Royal Decree aims (Article 1) the development of Law 13/2011 with regard to:
- The conditions under which the entities that hold titles to develop gambling activities included in the scope of application of Law 13/2011, of May 27, 2011, may develop advertising, sponsorship, promotion or any other form of commercial communication of their activity.
- The conditions under which certain responsible or safe gambling and consumer protection policies must be developed by the entities that hold titles to carry out gambling activities included in the scope of application of Law 13/2011, of May 27.
Thus, among the main measures of the Royal Decree we find the limitation, as far as timetables are concerned, of online gaming and betting advertisements on radio, television and platforms in the time slot ranging from 1:00 to 5:00 a.m., as well as the prohibition of advertising in the press and websites aimed at minors.
Now, going back to the main line of the article on gambling, what are its different disciplines?
The answer to this question can be deduced from the characters described above. Being so, among the examples of gambling we can highlight Casino games, Poker, betting or slots. In addition to this, thanks to technological advances, the benefit of playing video games is shifting from its monetary content, finding new video games that compensate the player with certain cryptocurrencies.
Among the main projects in the world of gambling we find Augur, a decentralized prediction market platform built on the Ethereum blockchain and developed by Forecast Foundation. In addition to this, there are several platforms that aim not only to gamble online but also to secure the investment risk and protect the bets placed, among them, Gnosis, Pool together.
