Public Gaming Magazine Sept/Oct 2021

59 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 impact on the gambling sector is evident right from the start. HOW WILL THE DSA IMPACT THE LOTTERY AND GAMBLING SECTOR? On 15 December 2020, the Commis- sion proposed an ambitious reform of the digital space with a comprehensive set of new rules for all digital services, includ- ing social media, online marketplaces, and other online platforms that operate in the European Union. One of its main aims is to clarify the liability regime for digital in- termediaries active in the European Union and to empower the enforcement of this regime by specifying what is illegal content and how digital services should react when confronted with illegal content. Its con- sequence is that illegal gambling content will be easier to take down via court order or directly by flagging the content on the digital service. It will become easier both for regulators and lotteries to tackle the predatory practices of ille- gal operators who operate without license and with- out regard for the player or the good of society. Illegal operators will find it harder to advertise their services to consumers on digital services. If the advertisement is flagged, the digital service will have to to take action against the il- legal advertisement and it will be possible to identify who ordered the advertisement. Furthermore, digital service providers will be obliged to make annual reports of advertising, thereby greatly enhancing transparency on who is advertising what and when. Enforcement action against illegal operators will become way more streamlined and actionable than previously. AND WHAT ABOUT THE EUROPEAN AI ACT? The EU has seen the potential of AI for good and for bad and with the proposed AI regulation will introduce legislation to allow for AI to be used for the benefit of society while preventing its malicious use by categorizing AI according to risk metrics. The highest-risk applications will not be allowed while moderate-risk applications will be allowed subject to severe conditions and limited-risk applications will generally be allowed while minimal-risk applica- tions (which are the majority of AI systems such as spam filters, etc.) will be allowed unconditionally. Among these most risky applications that will be prohibited are AI applications that deploy subliminal tech- niques beyond a person’s consciousness in order to materially distort a person’s behav- ior in a manner that causes or is likely to cause that person or another person physi- cal or psychological harm. Consequently, a system that would influence people to get them addicted to gambling or cause them to gamble problematically would be forbidden. Furthermore, AI systems are prohibited from exploiting any vulnerabilities of specific groups of persons due to their age, physical or mental ability in order to change their behavior in a manner that causes or is likely to cause that person or another person physical or psychological harm. AI systems bent on abusing the older or younger segments of the popula- tion and drive them towards excessive gambling would be prohibited. Even an AI system that identifies problematic gamblers but is applied to identify the people most prone to excessive gambling would also be a prohibited use of AI. Another interesting aspect of the new proposed AUI Regulation is the possibility provided to encourage and facilitate the drawing up of codes of conduct intended to foster the voluntary application to responsible AI systems. The EU is seriously intent on preparing and implementing the framework for a groundbreaking change to the regulatory landscape that shapes the evolution of the digital realm. The EU regulatory approach, although generic in its approach, also provides Lotteries, even beyond the borders of the EU, a number of interesting perspectives on ways to analyze and embrace strategies to address illegal gambling and responsible gaming, two fundamental pillars upon which lottery and gambling regulation must be based upon. Defending the public order against crime and protecting consumers will always be central to our mission. And since the digital world has become inseparable from the physical, preparing and being ready for the EU regulatory landscape is no longer an option but an imperative. COVID has changed the world by firmly consolidating the digital world within the physi- cal world, by merging the online and off-line realms. All future regu- latory, technological, and commercial approaches will need to integrate the most forward-looking digital component to their proposal. Turning this revolution into an oppor- tunity while applying the increasingly diverse legal framework will be challeng- ing but rewarding for those that invest in a holistic approach. This is the approach being embraced by all successful enter- prises. A multidisciplinary task force (in- volving IT, commercial and RG experts, along with lawyers and risk management people) is needed to study these develop- ments and assist the Lottery community in designing and implementing strategies to ensure AI and other digital tools are applied to the benefit of players and all lottery stakeholders. n THE TIME OF THE INTERNET AS AN UNDER-REGULATED SPACE IS NOW OVER. The digital post-covid future in the EU, continued from page 54