Regulation round-up 28 July 2015
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (22 July to 28 July 2015)
Italian police busts mafia gambling operation with links to Malta
Maltese regulator suspends licences of two companies believed to be involved in a £1.4bn gambling ring run by a notorious criminal gang
The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) said it will work with police to keep the jurisdiction free from crime after it suspended the operating licences of two companies alleged to have been part of a £1.4bn gambling ring run by a notorious Italian criminal gang.
In what has been dubbed ‘Black Wednesday’ in Italy, Italian police last week arrested more than 50 people connected to a mafia organisation believed to have been illegally offering online gaming products in Italy while also laundering proceeds of crime and committing tax fraud.
The gambling sites were being offered via a network of approximately 1,500 internet cafes each holding foreign gambling licences, known as CTDs, which are outside of the remit of the Italy’s gambling regulator.
Two of the licences believed to have been used by the criminal ring are held by companies called Betuniq and Betsolution4U, registered and regulated by the MGA since 2011.
German minister proposes removal of licence cap
German egaming regulation could face a radical overhaul after the Hesse Ministry of the Interior last week called for the removal of the 20-licence limit and the replacement of the country’s regional gambling board with a central authority modelled on Great Britain’s Gambling Commission.
The minister of the interior and sport for the German state of Hesse Peter Beuth, who had previously criticised the licensing process publicly, said the system needs to be opened up to a wider number of operators.
“We should move from a quantitative to a qualitative concession,” Beuth told the German Press Agency yesterday, adding that any operator which meets the licensing requirements should be granted a licence.
Seven days in regulation:
Poland to push for website blocking
Poland will move to tackle its substantial unlicensed market with new laws to block gambling websites in the country.
Following the imminent passing of an amendment to the country’s Gambling Act, which will reduce some of the barriers preventing foreign operators from gaining a licence in Poland, the Ministry of Finance will look to introduce new legislation to block unlicensed sites.
Operators active in Poland are due a stay of execution, however, as due to upcoming elections, however, any progress on website blocking is unlikely to be made until October, according to DLA Piper gaming lawyer Anna WietrzyÅska-CioÅkowska.
French Q2 gambling revenues stagnate
Revenues from France’s online gambling market flat lined in Q2 2015 as continued strong growth in sports betting failed to offset declines in both horseracing and poker.
According to figures released by l’Autorité de regulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL), total gross gaming revenue (GGR) were 180.5m (£126.9m) in Q2 2014 compared to 180.3m (£126.3m) in the three months ended 30 June 2015.
The regulator’s report showed that online sportsbooks maintained their positive momentum during the quarter, with revenues increasing 7% year-on-year to 63m (£44.1m) as the number of weekly active players increased 5% to 187,000.
Italian advertising ban ‘unlikely to pass’
The proposed ban on gambling-related advertising included in the latest draft of Italy’s new gambling law is unlikely to pass and could trigger legal challenges.
Delays to the new law known as the Delega Fiscale decree, which will overhaul Italy’s regulatory framework and ditch the turnover tax on sports betting in favour of a gross gaming revenue model, were confirmed earlier this month.
But since then the government has decided that any changes should be put before parliament, with Prime Minister Matteo Renzi declaring the reform debate “still not mature”.