than most anticipate; the 50% online market share it already has demonstrates its prowess. “I think it’s possible for them to retain their market share. They have a strong brand and heritage, which they will continue to bene?t from for a while in the future. But, over time, my assumption is that being a licensed operator like us we should gain the same level of trust and be able to take market share. Initially they could actually bene?t from the move,” he says. Great Danes Indeed, Denmark’s monopoly operator Danske Spil sprang out of the blocks with great effect when the market opened in January, proving that, with the right strategy in place, dominance pre-regulation can continue. Following the opening of the market, the operator saw its share of online pro?ts rise by a third (33%) to DKK837m (£89m) for the six months ending 30 June, compared to DKK629m in the corresponding period last year. But Hans Christian Madsen, Danske Spil’s chief executive, says planning for that moment, and the inevitable assault from competitors on its market share both from home and abroad, was long in the making. “We told the government and our board that not to [change the regulation] was the worst scenario for us, because then we would lose the game as it is impossible to ?ght on equal terms when we had to pay 30% tax and our competitors didn’t pay anything. “At that time we were also not able to put poker and casino on the internet. Our sports betting odds were no good because we had to pay tax,” he says. “We worked very hard on deciding how we should enter the market. We decided that because we were a market leader yesterday, we wanted to be a market leader tomorrow. So, not only did we want to have a strong casino and poker solution, but we also wanted to strengthen all our other areas. We wanted to meet the market at 100km an hour – at full speed. We wanted to be there straight away with a lot of marketing and pressure to take the chance. “It took us very much by surprise that the customers came to us so early. We think the Danske Spil branding is very important. People believe in it – they know their money is secure and that they will get a good product. We have ensured this corporate identity over the past ?ve years,” Madsen adds. Elsewhere in Europe, monopolistic operators are under threat from all sides. One must only look at the plight of OPAP, which for so long enjoyed an unchallenged dominance in the country, to see that the days of such regimes are numbered. The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) has urged the Greek government to dismantle the monopoly while pressure from the European Commission on anti-competitive grounds saw it con?rm plans to set a new 30% levy on gross earnings from all its games and a ?at 10% rate on all player winnings from 1 January 2013. The announcement saw OPAP’s share price fall by almost a ?fth.
“WE WANTED TO MEET THE MARKET AT 100KM AN HOUR – AT FULL SPEED. WE WANTED TO BE THERE STRAIGHT AWAY WITH A LOT OF MARKETING AND PRESSURE TO TAKE THE CHANCE”
Hans Christian Madsen, chief executive, Danske Spil
Going Dutch Next to undergo such a transformation could be the Netherlands, with eGaming Review exclusively revealing in October that its Ministry of Justice was preparing to introduce the country’s ?rst draft online gaming regulation early next year for consultation. Justin Franssen, head of the gaming practice group of VMW Taxand, says the past two years have seen much political debate to decide whether or not it should follow the Danish or the Belgian model, the latter determining that operators can only enter the market if they are in some way connected to a terrestrial licence – a measure clearly suited to protect the country’s current operators that have lobbied hard to retain their status and keep out foreign operators.
Danske Spil
Svenska Spel
Hans Christian Madsen, Danske Spil's chief executive
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