Hungarian online regulation compromise for slot machine ban

The Hungarian government has announced broad plans to regulate and tax egaming activities in order to compensate for revenues set to be lost following a nationwide ban on land-based slot machines.

The ban was announced on Monday, with Associated Press reporting that the machines would be outlawed in all bars and pubs and only permitted in three designated casinos in the cities of Budapest and Sopron.

State Secretary Janos Lazar said of the new law: “Our objective is to ensure that our poorest, most disadvantaged and defenseless citizens … be prevented from having the opportunity of spending their money on gambling activities.”

The regulation of egaming in Hungary, currently not specifying which verticals would and would not be permitted, was first mooted in September 2011, with authorities saying at the time that measures could be introduced in “early 2012″. However, while another measure floated at the time ““ an increased duty on slots ““ was introduced this year, there has been less progress on online.

It is currently unclear whether the move will see an open licensing process or whether state monopoly Szerencsejatek Zrt will continue to be the only operator permitted to offer certain products, as is currently the case for lotto games, scratchcards and sports betting.

Last December Szerencsejatek Zrt signed a six-year contract with GTECH G2 for the software provider’s Margin Maker sports betting platform as well as its Gaming Management System back-office solution.