Betting and Gaming

Our Advertising and Marketing specialists have significant experience assisting clients in navigating regulatory action by the Advertising Standards Agency and the Gambling Commission and interpreting and implementing new and updated regulations and guidance including conducting ad reviews and advising on the application of relevant regulations to the use of adtech. Our experienced team has advised numerous clients on the sale and acquisition of affiliate marketing businesses and has a deep understanding of the common concerns for the buyers and sellers of such businesses.

Our team of specialists, which includes former regulators, have a deep understanding of the anti-money laundering requirements applicable to clients in the gambling industry. Gambling businesses are required to play an active role in the prevention and detection of money laundering and terrorist financing. We regularly provide advice on policies and procedures, business risk assessments and reporting requirements.  

By combining commercial and regulatory expertise, we are able to add strategic value to all our clients' commercial arrangements and ensure that our client's regulatory profile is protected. We are known for specialist expertise in sponsorship, franchising and technology including platform agreements, games supply contracts and licensing arrangements.

MDR Cyber is the cyber security and investigations practice within Mishcon de Reya. Our team is made up of cyber and investigations specialists who work alongside our legal teams to provide a comprehensive response to cyber incidents, digital investigations, and risk management issues.

We work across the betting and gaming sector advising operators licensed by the Gambling Commission in connection with information security, annual audit and reporting obligations, as well as the level of cyber security customers expect.

Our Cyber team has experience assisting gambling clients with data loss incidents, where attackers have compromised IT infrastructure, and more unusual issues such as extortion. We are unique in having an in-house intelligence team who provide a broad range of services from due diligence to cryptocurrency tracing.

Robust data stewardship is critical to the gambling industry and our cross-firm data practice has extensive experience in advising clients on how best to protect and fully leverage their data assets. We conduct data audits, highlight potential gaps in compliance and advise how to implement the necessary procedures, as well as dealing with any ‘ad hoc’ incidents that may occur. Our group comprises numerous non-lawyer data protection experts and cyber security specialists, so that our advice is all-encompassing.

We have advised a number of innovative businesses at the forefront of the digital assets market, including non-fungible tokens (NFTs). In the wake of BetIndex (t/a Football Index), these products have piqued the interest of UK regulators. We are able to provide detailed and often complex regulatory advice that opines on the boundaries of regulated gambling and unregulated activities and to assist our clients in dealing with enquiries from the regulators.

We act for some of the world's largest games and software developers and publishers. We provide a mix of commercial, IP, corporate and regulatory advice to the games sector. We bring a unique perspective to the advice we can offer because in a short space of time we already have contentious and non-contentious experience with individuals, teams, publishers and other interested commercial parties. Given our experience, we know how to protect our clients against potential regulatory and commercial pitfalls while at the same time maximise their opportunities in areas such as regulatory governance, licensing and brand protection.

The legal and regulatory landscape in the UK is on the brink of material change. Our team is at the forefront of the debate. Together with our colleagues in Politics & Law, we have developed a wealth of knowledge in relation to the development of the legal and regulatory framework that enables us to provide valued advice to clients seeking to anticipate the possible outcomes and the impact on their existing businesses, acquisitions and expansion plans.