Italian regulator brings forward sportsbook changes
AAMS tells operators they can ignore official bet program restrictions enabling operators to settle all markets and offer a wider range of bet types
Italy-facing sportsbooks have been given a boost after the country’s regulator AAMS effectively brought forward the planned scrapping of its official bet program in a move which hands operators greater control and flexibility over its product.
For the past two years Italy has operated two bet programs, an official list containing core markets managed and settled by the regulator, and a complementary list for customised bet types which are handled by the operators themselves.
The official list has been judged to be too restrictive with some operators having complained about the length of time it could take some markets, such as match results for lower league football games, to be checked and settled by the regulator, hampering its ability to pay out customers promptly.
And while the official program will officially remain in place until March as previously outlined, the regulator recently informed operators they could, with immediate effect, treat all markets as complementary, therefore giving firms license to settle all bet types.
In addition, operators have been told they can add new betting markets so long as they meet specific criteria such as having no connection to court proceedings, no involvement with the private lives of individuals and having the ability to certify the outcome of the events.
DLA Piper gaming lawyer and partner Giulio Coraggio described the new measures as an “important” moment in the liberalisation process.
“This is an important change as the new regime allows operators to have a full control of the events and to notify to the regulator the outcome enabling them to pay the winnings much faster than in the past,” Coraggio said.
“The change has been accompanied by an additional flexibility of the gaming regulator in accepting the offering of new types of bets,” he added.
Italy’s online sportsbook industry has gone through a period of liberalisation over the past two years which has resulted in renewed interest in the market with the likes of bet365 obtaining a licence last year and Sky Betting and Gaming planning to launch in 2016.
Plans to change the current sports betting turnover levy to a revenue-based tax is also under discussion at government level.