Digibet case concludes leaving uncertain future for Germany
European Union rules that the existence of two licensing regimes does not break EU law, but controversial treaty's future still waiting to be decided
A legal case which questioned the legality of Germany’s controversial Inter State Treaty has today been concluded without any resolution on the future of online gambling regulation in the country.
In a case brought forward earlier this year, domestic operator Digibet questioned the legality of having two separate licensing regimes existent within the same country.
Germany’s Inter State Treaty, introduced in July 2012, has sought to regulate the country’s online gambling market despite the German state of Schleswig-Holstein already having issued several licenses to online operators.
The Court of Justice of the European Union today ruled that having two licensing systems in a federal state does not contravene EU law, however the future of the country’s long-delayed regulatory procedure’s future is still uncertain.
There has yet to be a decision in the case brought forward by the German district court of Sonthofen that questioned perceived inconsistencies and a lack of transparency regarding the process, with no conclusion expected until next year.
“The Inter State Treaty has evidently been a failure for Germany,” Maarten Haijer, secretary general of EGBA, said. “Other Länder should follow the example of not only Schleswig-Holstein but also successful regulatory models of EU Member States like Denmark and Spain, as the Netherlands did.”
Further trouble could await the treaty next month when Germany files its report on the functioning of the treaty when its two year-year grace period expires on 1 July.
“As no sports betting license has been granted it is clear that this will not be possible and we call on the Commission to properly enforce EU law in Germany and open an infringement case for failure to comply with EU law,” Haaijer added.
The European Commission last year launched infringement proceedings against several EU Member States, including Sweden, Belgium, Cyprus, Lithuania, Poland and Romania, however Germany was not questioned.