Tel Aviv walkout delays William Hill Denmark entry
Operator will not be among first wave of licencees due to focus on Spain and resolution of CMO dispute - Paf and Paddy Power confirmed as not applying for licences.
William Hill was not among the list of operators that yesterday discovered they had successfully gained a Danish licence due to “difficulties” that required more immediate attention, the operator has admitted.
Matt Green, regulatory affairs manager at William Hill Online, revealed that having begun the licence application, the company decided to “pause” the process until the operator could properly focus on ensuring their systems are compliant with Danish technical standards.
These difficulties emerged from October’s mass walkout from the company’s Tel Aviv office which saw almost all of its 185 staff leave for 10 days in protest at the departure of CMO Eyal Sanoff and rumours their jobs were being moved to Gibraltar.
The strikes rapidly spread to customer service centres in Bulgaria and Manila, reportedly in support of Sanoff, with operations only returning to normal more than a week after the unrest first began.
This reportedly left William Hill without the resources to apply for a Danish licence, prompting the operator to prioritise its Spanish application, as it considers Spain a more lucrative market. The company has now successfully submitted all its paperwork for a Spanish general licence, and is now looking to resume its Danish application in the coming months, eGR understands.
The Danish Gambling Authority’s (DGA) yesterday announced its list of new licensees, with some notable absences. Betclic Everest had already confirmed that it would not apply for a Danish licence in the near future, as it looks to consolidate operations, however Finnish operator Paf has now also confirmed that it has will not to apply for a licence at this time.
Thomas Lundberg, deputy CEO of the à land-based operator, revealed that the company is focusing entirely on its Spanish licence application, but may look to move into Denmark later in 2012.
Paddy Power, that this week signed a supplier deal with the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, has also reportedly decided not to apply for a Danish licence instead focusing on other markets.