EUROPEAN REGULATION
In conjunction with Ash Averill of DLA Piper London, iGB Affiliate provides a regulatory snapshot of the
European iGaming markets, charting the regulated gambling products and legalised operator types within
each country, and impending market updates (where applicable).
AUSTRIA
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse race betting, poker,
casino, bingo and lottery.
Operator type: Licences for sportsbetting
and horse race betting are available for
private operators on a regional basis
within Austria, whereas poker, casino,
bingo and lottery are controlled by the
monopoly, Austria Lotteries.
Status: No developments are anticipated
in the short-term.
BELGIUM
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse race betting, poker,
casino, bingo and lottery.
Operator type: All products are
available to private operators save for
lotteries, which are reserved excl usively
for the monopoly provider. Online
operators have needed to partner up
with local casinos in order to satisfy the
land-based establishment requirement;
or alternatively, apply for one of the 34
retail licences (F1 licences) which can be
extended to cover online (F1+ licence).
Status: The Belgium Gaming
Commission maintains a ‘blacklist’
of unlicensed operators and has also
entered into agreements with entities
that ‘facilitate’ unlicensed operators
(i.e. ISP providers, hosting services and
payment providers).
Blocking measures commenced
in January 2012 and subsequent
decisions from Belgian courts have
upheld the validity of the blacklist.
The European Commission requested
information from Belgium in November
2013 in relation to its gambling
regulatory regime, which is one of the
first steps the Commission can take
towards infringement proceedings.
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iGB Affiliate FEBRUARY/MARCH 2014
BULGARIA
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse race betting, poker,
casino, bingo and lottery (excluding
raffles and instant lottery games).
Operator type: All products are available
to private operators save for lotteries,
which are reserved exclusively for the
monopoly provider.
Status: Bulgaria’s Gambling Act became
law on July 1, 2012, but licences were
not available until mid-2013 as further
implementing legislation needed to be
in force. Any operator from an EU/EEA
jurisdiction or the Swiss Confederation
can apply for a licence. Recent changes to
the tax rate in Bulgaria from a turnover
to a gross gaming revenue-based system
may prompt more operators to apply for a
local licence.
CROATIA
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse race betting, poker,
casino, bingo and lottery.
Operator type: All products are available
to private operators save for lotteries,
which are reserved exclusively for the
monopoly provider.
Status: Since accession to the European
Union in July 2013, it is understood
plans are being made to update the
Croatian gambling regime and remove
the requirement to have a local
presence in Croatia.
CYPRUS
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting and lottery.
Operator type: OPAP has a monopoly
over lottery operations and only
sportsbetting licences are available to
private operators.
Status: Cyprus regulated online
gambling in July 2012. The government
published a blacklist and warned local
ISP providers that they would face
fines for failures to block sites offering
unlicensed gambling products. It is
possible that Cyprus will change its
gambling regulatory regime following a
request for further information by
the European Commission in
November 2013.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse racing betting and
lottery.
Operator type: Online gaming is not
expressly regulated, but a limited number
of local licences are available for Czech
companies with Czech share ownership.
Lottery is reserved for the monopoly.
Status: A draft law for online gambling
regulation was meant to be submitted
to the European Commission in June
2013, ensuring compliance with EU laws
and creating a comprehensive online
gambling regime. However, due to a fall
in government, the process has stalled.
A request for further information by the
European Commission in relation to
its gambling regulatory regime should
prompt the Czech Government (once
established) to amend its current laws.
DENMARK
Regulated gambling products:
Sportsbetting, horse race betting, poker,
casino, bingo and lottery.
Operator type: Sportsbetting, poker and
casino licences are available to private
operators. Bingo, lottery and horse race
betting (fixed odds only) is controlled by
the state monopoly.
Status: The Danish online gambling
regime went live on January 1, 2012.