Consumer Behaviour: Online Legal and Illegal Gambling

This report examines the factors that influence consumers’ decisions to gamble online, specifically factors that could be related to opting for legal as opposed to illegal sites. Legal sites are those that are licensed in the Netherlands and are subject to the respective licensing conditions and supervision by the Netherlands Gaming Authority.

The choice is a hypothetical one, as there were as yet no legal sites at the time of this study. The study uses a consumer survey of the factors involved in opting for online gambling sites. A conjoint analysis was carried out to examine consumer choice. This involved conducting a survey and carrying out an econometric analysis of the results. This enabled the relative importance of game factors that influence choice between online gambling sites to be gauged.

The results show that evidence of a Dutch licence has a positive influence on choice of online gambling sites, as do a compulsory player profile and information on game length and balance. The need to send in a proof of identity and a bank account is regarded as an obstacle.