Operators lose appeal against Dutch fines
Simbat Entertainment to pay €270,000 while Spinity Limited receives €100,000 fine for acting as ‘promotional agent’
Online gaming operators Simbat Entertainment and Spinity Limited have lost their appeal against the Dutch Gambling Authority’s (KSA) decision to fine the two firms for offering online gaming without a licence.
Simbat Entertainment, which is based in the Seychelles, and Spinity Limited were fined €270,000 and €100,000 respectively in July 2017.
In the case of Spinity, its fine was levied as it had acted as a ‘promotional agent’ for Simbat Entertainment and had marketed its games to Dutch players.
At the time of the fine, both operators launched an appeal against both the decision with the Court of the Hague. However, after hearings on 6 June, both operators have not elected to proceed any further with the claim.
Simbat Entertainment Limited previously operated websites including Nlbingo.com, 777bingo.nl Eurocazino.com, Simbatgokkasten.net and Gamblefactory.nl. Spinity has since ceased all operations and the domain is now inaccessible to any players.
Under the Dutch prioritisation criteria, online gambling operators are subject to assessment by the KSA if they use websites which: feature the Dutch language, uses a website with the .nl extension.
Operators can also be subject to investigation if their sites use Dutch in its advertising or uses typical Dutch terms or symbols (including windmills, clogs and tulips) and if their website uses the “usual” method of payment in Holland.
Should either operator wish to apply for a licence to operate egaming in the soon-to-be licensed Dutch regulated market they would be subject to a two-year “cooling off period” before they could do so.