ARJEL restructures to meet egaming needs
French regulator says the changes will help provide efficiency and adaptability
French online gambling regulator L’autorité de regulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL) has announced a complete restructuring of the organisation in an effort to better serve the regulated egaming industry.
The changes adopted by its president, Jean-François Vilotte, will see the directorate general responsible for the work of the general secretariat, economic studies and media and communications.
The branches of the organisation overseeing legal regulation, international relations, general management controls and IT will report to the president through the directorate general Frédéric Epaulard.
In a statement ARJEL said it hoped the new structure would allow the regulator to be more capable of reflecting the needs of the French online gambling industry.
“[This] reflects the experience of market regulation of online gaming acquired since 2010,” the statement said. “This reform will ensure the efficiency and adaptability of the ARJEL, in a context of changing market and regulatory conditions.”
In June the egaming regulator also announced a partnership with the country’s advertising industry’s regulatory organisation L’Autorité de Régulation Professionnelle de la Publicité (ARPP), with the two bodies working together to reduce player addiction and protect minors.
The previous month ARJEL had submitted 33 recommendations to the country’s egaming legislation to help reduce the risk of addiction. According to the report, 47.8% of French adults gambled during 2010.
Despite the development of a less competitive poker sector, according to figures released by ARJEL the regulated French egaming market saw some operators begin to make a profit in 2012 despite overall operating income remaining negative.