WEBMASTER WORLD
Lottery is reserved for the monopoly.
Status: A draft bill has been published
which creates a local licensing regime
for all gambling activities together with
stringent enforcement measures for any
unlicensed operators. New legislation has
been submitted t o the Czech Parliament
and notified to the EC, but has received
criticism from EU regulators and Malta,
meaning the government’s aim to have
the law implemented by 1 January 2017
looks in doubt.
DENMARK
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, casino,
bingo and lottery.
Operator Type: Sports betting, 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 1 January 2012.
ISP blocking measures are active
in the jurisdiction and the Danish
Gaming Authority has been granted an
injunction in order to block operators
and suppliers that have been targeting
Danish customers without the requisite
licence. In December, the government
adopted two amendment bills which will
create specific licences for fantasy sports
operators, as well as bring about certain
new match-fixing and AML measures.
ESTONIA
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, casino,
bingo and lottery.
Operator Type: Licences for all
gambling products are available for
private operators save that the monopoly
has exclusive rights to lottery.
Status: Only 18 operators are currently
licensed in the jurisdiction, 10 of
which relate to online gambling. A
“blacklist” of around 1,100 operators is
constantly maintained and updated by
local authorities and ISP blocking is in
force. A new law which introduces new
player protection measures and relaxes
certain online sports betting advertising
restrictions came into force in June 2015.
FINLAND
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, casino,
bingo and lottery.
Operator Type: All gambling products
are under the exclusive control of
the three monopoly providers, Rahaautomaatiyhdistys (“RAY”), Fintoto Oy
and Veikkaus Oy.
Status: ECJ ruling confirmed that
Finland’s three monopoly providers are
legally permitted which has subsequently
been written into law. In November
2013, the EC also withdrew infringement
proceedings.
Active enforcement measures are in
place (restrictive marketing for offshore
operators and ISP blocking).
FRANCE
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker and
lottery.
Operator Type: Private operators can
obtain online licences for sports betting,
horse race betting and poker. The
monopoly has exclusive rights to lottery.
Status: France is a regulated market that
has been sanctioned by the EC.
On 13 February 2014, French Members
of Parliament introduced a bill which
amends several provisions of the French
Consumer Code. The amendments
expand the definition of prohibited games
of chance to capture games that are, even
in part, based on chance.
ARJEL, the French gambling regulator,
is currently carrying out a review of the
country’s online gambling regime.
GERMANY
Regulated Gambling Products:
Schleswig-Holstein, a small Northern
German state, regulates sports betting,
horse race betting, poker, casino and
bingo. The other 15 states of Germany
currently only permit sports betting and
horse race betting.
Operator Type: Private operators can
no longer obtain licences in SchleswigHolstein, and those in existence will
expire on 30 June 2019. In the other
15 states, horse race betting licences
are available at a regional level but the
position surrounding the 20 available
sports betting licences is still uncertain.
Status: The licensing regime in Germany
is in a state of flux. The 20 Federal
sports betting licensees were named
on 2 September 2014, but following
numerous appeals from operators
not granted one. In October, Hesse’s
highest administrative court rejected the
regional government’s appeal against an
earlier decision to suspend the awarding
process, leaving the legal and regulatory
position uncertain.
The German court of Sonthofen
has referred questions to the CJEU
regarding, among other things, whether
the licensing procedure and current state
of gambling regulation is compliant with
EU law. The Advocate General delivered
his opinion on 22 October, with the
official CJEU decision expected shortly.
GREAT BRITAIN
Regulated Gambling Products: Sports
betting, horse race betting, poker, casino,
bingo and lottery.
Operator Type: All licences are available
to private operators save for lottery,
which is reserved exclusively for the
monopoly provider, Camelot.
Status: Any operator that transacts
with, or advertises to, British residents
requires a licence from the Gambling
Commission. From 31 March 2015,
licensed operators are required to source
gambling software from Commission
licensed businesses.
A corresponding tax rate of 15%
of gross profits was introduced on 1
December 2014. This is subject to an ongoing judicial review by a Gibraltar trade
association and its questions regarding
its compatibility with European law have
been referred to the EJC. The Treasury is
confident that it can defend its position.
Significant changes to social
responsibility requirements have been
introduced, phased in over six months.
GREECE
iGB Affiliate Issue 55 FEB/MAR 2016
85