Black market fears mar record Danish revenues
Revenues the highest since re-regulation in 2012 despite growing concerns over the size of the country's unlicensed market
Danish online casino revenues grew 8.6% year-on-year in 2014 after the market enjoyed its strongest quarter since re-regulation three years ago in Q4.
According to figures released by the Danish Gambling Authority, gross gaming revenues from online casino were DKK1.1bn (£102m) last year, up from DKK990m (£93.9m) in 2013, after a record DKK285m (£27m) was generated in Q4 2014.
Betting revenues also increased 29% from DKKDKK1.4bn (£131.4m) in 2013 to DKK1.8bn (£168.9m) last year, although the regulator did not split the figures between online and offline.
Overall, the Danish gambling market grew 20% year-on-year to DKK2.9bn (£270.8m).
The financial figures preceded the release of a new survey, commissioned by the Danish Online Gambling Association (DOGA), on the size of the country’s unlicensed market.
The survey, conducted by research agency MyResearch, found that 8% of online sports betting players placed their bets with unlicensed operators, while 17% of the total monthly spend is placed with betting operators without a Danish licence.
DOGA chief executive Morten Ronde told eGaming Review this morning that while the number of people placing bets with unlicensed firms was relatively small, he was concerned by the amount of money being spent with unlicensed operators.
“Everybody loses when money is staked on black market operators,” Ronde said. “The players do not get the same kind of the protection that the Danish legislation and controls provide and the Danish State loses out on tax money,” he added.
Ronde said it was now up to the Danish Gambling Authority to investigate the matter and take proactive steps to prevent the black market from growing, such as implementing payment blocking measures.
“We want the regulator to investigate if it can do anything about the websites such as blocking them,” Ronde said.
“If it can’t block them because of how the legislation is drafted in Denmark, then the law should be amended,” he added.
Despite the liberalisation of the online Danish market in recent years, government-owned monopoly Danske Spil continues to dominate the market with an estimate 60% share.