DraftKings Partners With Cambridge Health Alliance to Develop Responsible Gaming Program

The cooperation with the Division on Addiction includes innovative employee training, strategic consulting and research.
DraftKings Partners With Cambridge Health Alliance to Develop Responsible Gaming Program
By
July 02, 2021

Leading digital sports entertainment and gaming company DraftKings is further expanding its responsible gaming efforts. The company has launched a partnership with the Division on Addiction of the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA). As part of the cooperation, the Division is slated to pioneer a systems-based safer play approach to training employees.

Both brands already cooperated in the past and pursue a strategic consulting agreement, which also includes a focus on more thorough research. DraftKings already has one of the most extensive responsible gaming programs in the industry and cement its commitment to maintaining a safe environment.

“We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Division on Addiction at Cambridge Health Alliance to expand our research-driven approach to responsible gaming,” said Jason Robins, DraftKings’ co-founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board in the official press release on June 30, 2021. “Evidence-based and data-driven strategies, created in coordination with CHA’s premier researchers, will enhance our player safety policies, product tools, and employee trainings.”

Cambridge Health Alliance is affiliated with Harvard Medical School and provides an innovative healthcare system through the Harvard Teaching Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. The Division on Addiction was founded more than 25 years ago in 1992 and is part of the Department of Psychiatry.

Five years ago in 2016, the Division already collaborated with DraftKings and executed dedicated research on daily fantasy sports play based on anonymized customer data. The feedback provided pivotal insights to strengthen the company’s responsible gaming efforts. It also triggered academic presentations at international conferences and peer-reviewed articles published in various renowned outlets.

Their latest partnership focuses on the development of a scientifically-driven employee training program. The current approach includes a brand new logic model, conceptual map, needs assessment schedule, and evaluation plan in order to recognize and respond to the larger context of the gaming environment.

“We look forward to continuing our engagement with DraftKings on these strategic consulting, training, and dissemination activities and believe that this work will break new ground in responsible gaming,” said Debi LaPlante, Ph.D., Principal Investigator, Director of the Division, and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

By taking advantage of forensic research and implementing the insights through groundbreaking technology, DraftKings can maintain a safe environment to its customers. It especially protects vulnerable populations and provides pivotal groundwork resources to help problem gamblers.

Thanks to the scientific knowledge provided by the CHA, DraftKings employees will be even better prepared to recognize potential gambling addictions and provide guidance to help customers at risk of gaming-related problems. Likewise, the operator will gain more understanding about the customer’s perspective and further improve the overall experience.

The sports betting market has expanded exponentially and became a multi-billion-dollar industry throughout the last few years. Due to the rapid growth, the urge for elaborate responsible gambling efforts has gained widespread recognition among regulators and competitors.

As one of the industry leaders, DraftKings has fully committed to this vision and established several measures throughout its entire business. The company provides responsible gaming tools for customers such as the setting of specific limits for betting, cooling-off periods, and self-exclusion. Information with regards to statewide help hotlines is displayed prominently across all verticals.

The renewed collaboration with the Cambridge Health Alliance is the second investment in dedicated research on sports wagering in the current year. DraftKings also directly contributes to the International Center for Responsible Gaming’s Fund to Support Research on Sports Wagering. They are a member of the American Gaming Association (AGA) and have recently introduced AGA’s Have A Game Plan. ® Bet Responsibly™ public service campaign.

Written by