The UK Gambling Commission has published final guidance on new promotional rules that will prohibit operators from mixing different gambling verticals within the same bonus offer, with the measures taking effect on 19 January 2025.
The cross-selling ban, originally announced in March 2024, was initially scheduled for December implementation but has been delayed to mid-January. The regulations aim to prevent operators from encouraging customers to switch between different gambling products through incentive structures.
Core Requirements for Promotional Compliance
Under the new framework, both the qualifying customer activity and the resulting reward must relate to the same gambling vertical—betting, bingo, casino, or lottery—unless the offer provides completely unrestricted choice to the customer.
In guidance published on 12 December, the Commission clarified that unrestricted offers must give customers “full freedom of choice” in selecting which product category to use credits or bonus money on, with no operator-imposed limitations.
The regulator provided specific examples of compliant offers, including “spend £5 on any product to receive credit or bonus,” which qualifies as acceptable due to its completely open structure for customer choice.
Prohibited promotional structures include betting on sports to receive casino free spins, or wagering on casino games to earn sports betting credits. The Commission explicitly stated that such cross-vertical incentives violate the amended regulations.
Detailed Compliance Framework
The Gambling Commission outlined nine specific promotional scenarios with compliance determinations:
Compliant Offers:
- “Bet £5 and get £10 free bet” – single vertical throughout
- “Spend £5 on casino products and get 20 free spins” – both activities within casino category
- “Spend £10 on any licensed product and get £10 credit to spend on your choice” – unrestricted customer choice on both qualifying activity and reward
- “Deposit £5 and get £5 credit of any licensed product” – unrestricted customer choice with no product participation requirement
Non-Compliant Offers:
- “Bet £5 to get 20 free spins” – mixes betting and casino verticals
- “Bet £5 and get £5 free bet plus 20 free spins” – reward comprises mixed products
- “Bet £5 to get £10 credit for all products” – operator specifies qualifying activity while claiming unrestricted reward
- “Spend £10 on any product and get £5 free bet” – customer choice on qualifying activity but operator-dictated reward category
Impact on Free-to-Play Promotional Games
The regulations extend to free-to-play games integrated within operator applications. Licensees can no longer offer promotional games that award bonuses spanning multiple gambling verticals. Any rewards from such games must remain restricted to a single product category.
“The provision applies irrespective of whether a stake on the product category is required or not in order to receive the reward,” said Pradeep Rajania, senior policy manager at the Gambling Commission. “The important point to note is that the customer must have full freedom of choice in which product category to use their credits or bonus money – it must not be restricted in any way by the operator.”
The Commission provided examples showing that daily reward games offering mixed prizes such as free bets, free spins, and cash would be non-compliant. However, games offering multiple denominations within a single product category, such as various free bet amounts, would meet regulatory requirements.
The new rules represent part of the Commission’s broader initiative to promote socially responsible incentives within the gambling sector. The March consultation indicated that incentives allowing customers to select products for credits or bonus money on an unrestricted basis would remain permissible, though the recent guidance provides specific parameters for such offers.
Operators have until 19 January 2025 to adjust their promotional structures to comply with the new framework.
Source: UK Gambling Commission
