Norway rules out licences for private operators
Ministry of Culture cites fears of aggressive marketing and problem gambling in its decision to stick with monopoly model
The Norwegian government has decided against introducing a licensing model for private operators over concerns it would lead to aggressive marketing and increased gambling addictions.
A government-led investigation looked into whether liberalising the market and introducing a licensing system would be beneficial to the nation.
But the Ministry of Culture has instead opted to provide its full backing to its monopoly Norsk Tipping.
“Our conclusion is that an exclusive rights model is still more responsible than a license model, despite the fact that there is some leakage of players to unregulated foreign players,” culture minister, Linda Helleland, said.
“Norsk Tipping’s main objective is to offer gambling in general forms, not to maximise profits.
“Many of the accountability measures we have today would have been too costly for the international gaming companies.
“Many companies would choose to remain outside the regulated market rather than introduce such measures.”
Norsk Tipping has been operating in the region since 1948 and donates profits to the nation’s sport and culture departments.