Dutch online gambling market worth 296m
Gross game income up 7.6% year-on-year as the regulator makes case for 20% online tax rate
The Dutch regulator said the country’s online gambling market will be worth 296m (£217m) in gross game income this year in a report released today which also stated the proposed 20% tax rate will lead to optimal market conditions.
According to a market overview report by the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the size of the Dutch market will increase 7.6% year-on-year, up from 275m (£201m) in 2014, based on an estimated 437,000 number of online gamblers.
“The size of the market has grown significantly in the period 2003 to 2015,” the report said.
“However, despite this strong growth the size of the online market is 13% of the total gambling market [which is] slightly lower than the proportion of online in Europe,” the report added.
The Marktscan Online Kansspelen 2015 report also found that upon legalisation of the market in 2017 an estimated 76% of profits derived from the online gambling market (channelization) will come from regulated operators by 2020.
The figure is based on the proposed 20% tax rate for online operators and is line with current government targets and the past experience of other European countries.
“The conclusion of the Gaming Authority is that if the tax rate goes up it will have a detrimental effect on channelisation and I don’t think they’ve said that publically previously,” Justin Franssen, attorney at Dutch law firm Kalff Katzz & Franssen, told eGaming Review.
“It’s also important to note that the regulator found that there is also no evidence that legalising online gambling will lead to an increase in addiction,” he added.
The report found that 83% of Dutch online gamblers show no signs of online gambling addiction, while 11% are deemed to be at risk and 5.2% categorised as a problem gambler.