Greek regulation "hopelessly inconsistent", says EGBA chief
Industry rounds on Greek regulatory scenario after OPAP chief Kamil Ziegler's claims interim licensees are operating in a grey market
European Gaming and Betting Association secretary general Maarten Haijer is calling on the European Commission to intervene in what he describes as a “hopelessly inconsistent” regulatory situation in Greece.
Haijer’s comments come after OPAP chief executive Kamil Ziegler last week partly attributed his company’s disappointing Q3 results on “adverse conditions” caused by 24 egaming firms operating in Greece under interim licences.
According to Ziegler, these licensees operate in a “very grey zone” and directly led to the underperformance of OPAP’s nascent online sportsbook.
Speaking to eGaming Review this morning, Haijer said the regulatory and legal situation in Greece remained “hopelessly inconsistent” and called upon the European Commission to provide some clarity.
“It is evident that the European Commission will need to urgently open an infringement procedure against Greece to ensure that the basic rules of the EU Treaty are finally complied with,” he said.
However, Teemu Lehtinen, an independent gambling policy consultant, said the regulatory framework in Greece justified the presence of the 24 operators and that their presence in the market was entirely legal.
“There is nothing dubious about the way they do business in the Greek market given that they are subject to both the Greek legal obligations and the licensing rules of their respective countries,” Lehtinen said.
Lehtinen noted that OPAP’s privatisation agreement, signed when the operator was purchased by investment vehicle Emma Delta, included online rights to all land-based monopoly products except sports betting.
The Greek government has yet to make progress with the issuing of licences for its online sports betting market despite the European Commission having previously issued the country with infringement proceedings, something the EC threatened to escalate once more if the country did not comply with certain requirements earlier this year.
“When one adds to this that in 2014, these 24 companies paid in excess of 40m in gambling and betting tax, it is clear to everyone that the current competitive system is working,” Lehtinen added.
OPAP’s monopoly has been consistently challenged by operators and industry associations who argue it contravenes EU law, however the operator has repeatedly insisted it has nothing to clarify with regards to its exclusive right to operate in the Greek market.
OPAP has yet to respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.