Focal Points Newsletter - June 2025
Hello,
Welcome to the June issue of Focal Points.
We’re excited to announce our participation in this year’s International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) conference in Toronto, Ontario, Canada this October.
Check out the thought leadership article on our session at IAGR with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas International Gaming Institute. Plus, get a recap of Dr. Melissa Salmon’s panel presentation at the Responsible Gambling Council Discovery Conference last month.
We’re also pleased to share more on Focal Assist, our new customer-facing digital resource that helps operators prevent harm, protect players, meet regulatory requirements, and create safer gambling environments.
Read time: 4 minutes
At IAGR, Focal will team up with UNLV International Gaming Institute’s Director of Research, Dr. Kasra Ghaharian, to share insights from a collaborative, self-funded research program.
In this session, we’ll explore how academic and applied research partnerships can support resilient regulations using industry data.
Topics will highlight key findings around when to engage players during continuous play sessions, how small incentives may impact player behaviour, and why replicating findings across jurisdictions leads to stronger evidence to support safer gambling policy and practice.
Melissa contributed to a panel at this year’s Discovery Conference hosted by the Responsible Gambling Council (RGC) in Toronto.
She presented key findings from Focal’s large-scale evaluation, highlighting how real-world player data can help identify the characteristics of effective in-person safer gambling interactions between staff and players — and how those interactions can lead to meaningful, lasting changes in play.
As the sector continues to evolve, sharing evidence-based research remains essential to building safer, more informed gambling environments.
In other news, we have also wrapped up the first paper in our collaborative program of research with UNLV’s International Gaming Institute on player risk and session length. The manuscript is currently under review for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Stay tuned!
Our latest solution, Focal Assist, is a digital prevention-focused safer gambling resource which allows customers to understand their play and make informed, safer choices. It is:
- Independent
- Evidence-based
- Designed for prevention, not just intervention
- Backed by 30+ years of public health and gambling research
This tool works in harmony to strengthen player trust and operator accountability. Learn more about how Assist can work for you.
What is Focal Assist?
This short promotional video introduces Focal Assist, Focal Research’s digital safer gambling resource designed to promote prevention, education, and informed play. You’ll see how venues can seamlessly offer guests 24/7 access to safer gambling materials using QR-coded business cards. Learn how guests are empowered with evidence-based tools—including self-assessments and cost calculators—while operators benefit from actionable analytics and customizable, secure pages.
Whether you’re a venue operator or a regulator, Focal Assist is designed to work in harmony with your goals to enhance player protection and build trust at every level of risk.
EGM Cost of Play Calculator - Demo
Turning numbers into insights—real-time cost estimates for smarter play decisions.
This walkthrough video demonstrates how the Cost of Play Calculator—one of Focal Assist’s key tools—helps guests understand the financial impact of their gambling choices. Anonymous and easy to use, the calculator provides personalized estimates based on real math, not guesswork. Viewers see how adjusting game settings (like denomination, credits, or time played) affects their estimated spending over time.
By providing this clarity before play begins, the calculator supports informed decisions and helps users set realistic, safer play limits—one of many features built into Focal Assist to encourage sustainable play habits.
Focal is an independent safer gambling research and technology company focused on gambling risk detection and player support.
Building on 30 years of applied gambling research experience, we continue to investigate real-world gambling behaviour and safer gambling impacts, providing evidence-based insights to inform policy and practice on a global scale.
Let us know if we can assist you with your safer gambling needs.
Sincerely,
The Focal Team
Copyright © 2025 Focal Research Consultants Limited, All rights reserved.
Our mailing address is:
Focal Research Consultants Limited
7071 Bayers Rd Suite 309
Halifax, NS B3L 2C2
Canada
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