Danish casino and sports revenues reach new high
DKK240m brought in from online casino though poker revenues remain flat year-on-year
Denmark’s online casino and sports betting markets have each seen gross gaming revenues shoot up by 30% year-on-year in the three months ended 31 March, the first quarter with comparative post-regulation figures.
The rise, from DKK185m to DKK240m for casino and from DKK285m to DKK370m for sports, were accompanied by flat poker revenues of DKK55m, bringing the overall market total to a new high of DKK610m (£69.1m).
The first-quarter increase comes after the Danish Gambling Authority (DGA) issued four-year licence extensions to 25 dot.dk operators in January. 888 was among the more notable operators not to receive an extension, though 20 private operators will remain in the market until 2017 at least.
Denmark’s online gambling market formally opened in January 2012, meaning Q1 2013 is the first quarter with an accurate comparator. According to projections from the DGA, GGR for the whole of 2013 across online and land-based gambling activities is anticipated to reach DKK7.8bn, a year-on-year rise of 4%.
The DGA issued its first annual report in March this year, in which it claimed that illegal operators account for “less than 5%” of the country’s egaming activity. “One of the most powerful tools against the illegal gambling market is Danish players’ decision to play the games provided within a regulated framework,” DGA director Birgitte Sand said at the time.
Since the opening up of the dot.dk egaming market, internet service providers have been ordered by authorities to block a number of unlicensed operators including bet-at-home and TitanPoker.