Stakeholder interests in gambling revenue: an obstacle to public health interventions?

Marionneau, Virve; Nikkinen, Janne

doi:10.1016/j.puhe.2020.03.021

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…The results of this comparison are related to three possible reasons that we have identified in our previous studies (Mandolesi et al, 2022;Marionneau & Nikkinen, 2020a;Nikkinen & Marionneau, 2021;Rolando, Mandolesi, et al, 2020): the game portfolios and the operating costs, as well as private profit.…”

Section: Analysis Methodsmentioning

confidence: 58%

“…The included countries differ in terms of how Sg is collected. In Italy, the bulk of Sg is collected via taxation, while in Norway and Finland earmarked contributions are significant (also Marionneau & Nikkinen, 2020a).…”

Section: Analysis Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a recent comparison of ten European gambling companies, the Italian company Snaitech also had the highest proportional figures for commissions to agents (Marionneau & Nikkinen, 2020a). This finding was attributed to Snaitech having the densest redistribution network of any company in Italy, at least according to their own financial report.…”

Section: Operating Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although highly general in nature, the results of this analysis showed that while more liberal regimes produced more gross gambling revenue (GGR = total wager minus winnings returned to players) per capita than corporatist or social democratic regimes on average (with the notable exception of Finland, which has a comparatively high availability of gambling), figures also varied between game product types. The share of this revenue that is directed back to society may be subject to important variations depending particularly on taxation rates, operating costs, and the share of company profit (Marionneau & Nikkinen, 2020a;Sulkunen et al, 2019). These also vary between game types.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Does the System Matter? Surplus Directed to Society in Monopolistic and License-Based Gambling Provision.

Marionneau

Mandolesi

Rolando³

et al. 2022

JGI

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The comparative advantages of license-based and monopolistic gambling regimes have been discussed in previous literature from the perspective of their capacity to prevent harms, but less is known about the ability of different regimes to produce public revenue. Gambling is nevertheless an important source of revenue for public service provision. The current paper compares figures from the financial statements of two monopolistic gambling providers in Finland (Veikkaus) and Norway (Norsk Tipping), to four license-based companies operating in the Italian market (Snaitech, Sisal, Gamenet and HBG gaming) to analyze how much surplus they contribute to their host societies and what kind of factors these amounts depend on. The results show that overall, the Nordic monopolistic operations appear more effective in terms of producing gambling surplus to society than the Italian license-based companies. This difference is analyzed in terms of game product portfolios, operating costs, and levels of normal profit. The role of operating costs appears to be the most important factor explaining the lower surplus generated by Italian companies. However, the bulk of these operating costs are directed to the redistribution network which creates employment. If these employment effects are considered, both licensing and monopolistic regimes appear similarly effective. We conclude by problematizing the use of financial effectiveness as a measure for good gambling policy. High surplus collected for societies is also related to high overall gambling volumes that go against public health objectives of reducing harms.

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Section: Analysis Methodsmentioning

confidence: 58%

Section: Analysis Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Operating Costsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Does the System Matter? Surplus Directed to Society in Monopolistic and License-Based Gambling Provision.

Marionneau

Mandolesi

Rolando³

et al. 2022

JGI

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“…It was also found in a previous study on the magnitude of commissions to agents given by European gambling operators (Marionneau & Nikkinen, 2020) that such costs could be as high as 30% of the company's gross gambling revenue. Figures for the Nordic companies are moderate by comparison, but they nevertheless show some variation that could reflect the importance of online channel and product portfolios.…”

Section: Factors Influencing Efficiency In the Raising Of Sgmentioning

confidence: 66%

On the efficiency of Nordic state-controlled gambling companies

Nikkinen

Marionneau

2020

Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs

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Aims: This article assesses the efficiency of six Nordic state-controlled gambling companies in raising revenue for their host societies, and the terms under which they operate. Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway have established gambling monopolies on the grounds that they help to prevent fraud and money laundering, and channel proceeds to their host societies. Within the last decade, Denmark (2012) and Sweden (2019) have opened substantial parts of their gambling markets to competition, whereas Finland and Norway continue to uphold monopolies. Design: The analysis is based on publicly disclosed income statements and financial reporting concerning Nordic gambling operators for the year 2017. We calculated how much they contribute to societies, what are the costs, and how these figures compare among the companies. Results: We found that Veikkaus raises the highest amounts of surplus to society both in absolute terms and in relative numbers, and that, overall, the companies vary in efficiency. We discuss the reasons for these differences, focusing on their respective product portfolios, institutional frameworks and competitive market positions. Conclusions: The results problematise the measurement of efficiency in gambling companies in monetary terms. Efficiency depends on high total consumption with little regard to the principles of responsible gambling and the prevention of gambling problems. Nordic countries have a strong commitment to the protection of health, but in the case of gambling, protecting the monopoly seems to outweigh harm prevention.

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