Svenska Spel CEO renews online casino calls
Lennart Käll says Swedish government should approve online casino application in light of "troublesome developments" in unregulated activity
Svenska Spel CEO Lennart Käll says the operator must be granted an online casino licence after highlighting an increase in “troublesome” advertising from unregulated operators.
Last year the gambling monopoly announced plans to launch an online casino following a slump in overall group profits and confirmed a licence application had since been submitted to the Swedish government.
According to figures released by Svenska Spel last week, Swedish online casino turnover was approximately SEK2bn last year, an 18% increase compared to 2013, while online casino marketing spend rose to over SEK1bn.
“It is a troublesome development because advertising is so intrusive and extensive and is from unregulated actors outside government supervision and control,” Käll said.
Last week Svenska Spel revealed the firm had recorded full-year net gaming revenues of SEK8.9bn in 2014, an 8% year-on-year fall when compared to SEK9.7bn the previous year.
Net sales from the online business were higher than land-based for the first time, despite the firm’s online market share declining from 23% to 22%.