About the betting industry
| |
|
What is betting?
Betting is defined by the Gambling Act 2005 as the making or
accepting of a bet on the outcome of a race, competition or other
event or process; the likelihood of anything occurring or not
occurring; or whether anything is or is not true.
What types of betting are there?
General betting licence holders are able to
offer facilities for betting:
- at premises-based bookmakers (off-course)
- on tracks (on-course)
- by remote means
(including online gambling).
Pool betting incorporates:
- racecourse pool betting
- football and other sports pool betting
- many of the ‘fantasy football' type competitions.
Pool betting can be conducted remotely or non-remotely.
Remote pool betting is
conducted, for example, via an online betting site run by one of
the football pools operators. Non-remote pool betting is conducted
in person (for example, the Tote, which accepts pool bets on tracks
and in high street betting shops).
Betting intermediaries
Betting intermediaries bring two or more
parties together, but do not have liability for their bets. Betting
intermediaries can be remote
or non-remote.
Remote betting
intermediaries, which includes betting exchanges, generally
operate through the internet.
An example of a non-remote betting intermediary is a tic-tac,
who normally works within a betting ring on a horse or greyhound
racing track.
Spread betting
Spread betting: We do not regulate spread
betting. This is the responsibility of the Financial Services Authority.
Further information about betting
More information about the betting industry is
available in Gambling Industry Statistics.
Page last reviewed: April
2013