Al Watson, CEO of Dataworks Group, participated in a panel discussion at the Canadian Gaming Summit titled “Self-exclusion: a plus for protection or a boost to the black market?” The panel explored how the gaming industry can enhance harm reduction tools and programs to make them more accessible and effective.

The discussion centred on three critical areas: eliminating barriers to participation, offering flexible program options, and ensuring strong regulatory enforcement. A central theme emerged around using technology to reduce stigma and access barriers while developing comprehensive programs that collect market-wide data for more effective regulatory interventions.

Key Insights from the Discussion

Removing Stigma Through Technology

Watson highlighted how traditional or most legacy exclusion programs are ineffective because they often require players to stand at counters or visit a physical venue when they are in a very vulnerable state and have photos taken—creating negative barriers to participation. Modern technology backed Self-Exclusion programs eliminate this stigma and enable more people to seek help when needed, and can integrate valuable measures such as the ability to nominate a support person to accompany your journey.

Enhanced Market Intelligence for Regulators

Watson discussed how advanced self-exclusion systems go beyond individual exclusions by capturing much broader sets of market transactions, giving regulators powerful data to design targeted interventions—capabilities that legacy systems simply cannot support.

Learning from Global Implementations

Watson drew on international experiences, particularly highlighting Australia’s national BetStop program as a model implementation. He commended regulators who are “future-proofing their markets” through data-driven approaches that benefit all stakeholders. The discussion also addressed the importance of extending protections across provincial and national boundaries, emphasising the need for consistent, standardised player protections across international jurisdictions.