Regulation round-up 10 December 2013
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (4 December to 10 December 2013)
Trade body hits out at Danske Spil’s “unfair” advantage
Danish gambling trade body DOGA “frustrated” with operator’s marketing tactics and calls for additional regulation to level the playing field
Industry trade organisation the Danish Online Gambling Association (DOGA) has called on consumer protection agencies to introduce new regulation to help combat Danske Spil’s “unfair” position in the Danish market.
Speaking with eGaming Review, DOGA CEO Morten Roende said the former monopoly, which is estimated to have a market share of over 60%, had unfair advantage over its competitors in the way it markets its brand to consumers.
Danske Spil is currently split between its lottery business, which remains a monopoly with profits going to charitable causes, and the company’s private betting and casino arm.
The lottery profits, which is called “Tipsmidlerne”, goes to sports associations and cultural and public health organisations.
“Misleading” Mr Green ad banned by ASA
A TV ad by Swedish operator Mr Green has become the latest gambling advert to be banned by the UK Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) for “misleading” customers over a free spins offer.
Text screened during the advert which read “Offer valid for 30 days. Must wager 35x bonus to withdraw winnings”, was later followed by a voice-over saying “Join now and get 20 free spins”. The complainant challenged whether the ad was misleading, because it was not clear to what the text referred to.
In response to the ruling, Mr Green said that the script, which had been approved by advertising services company Clearcast, was referring to the free spins offer contained in the ad and that the customer would be required to spend the bonus money from the free spins 35 times before they could withdraw their winnings.
Seven days in regulation:
UK licensing consultation closes after strong response
The UK Gambling Commission has described the consultation on proposed amendments to the licence conditions and codes of practice (LCCP) as “useful”, after the window for responses from the gambling industry closed last week.
As part of the amendments, an emphasis will be placed on online operators to ensure their software suppliers are in possession of a UK licence or fall foul of the licensing code, and are expected to be implemented in the shadow of the Gambling Bill next year.
The Commission said it will publish its response to the LCCP consultation in early 2014 while also drafting further operator guidance on what constitutes a software supplier following concerns of ambiguity.
Romania’s egaming laws to be overhauled
Romania’s online gambling laws look set to be relaxed after the country’s regulator revealed it was preparing to finalise new draft regulation by the end of the month.
Odeta Nestor, president of the recently formed National Gambling Office (NGO), last week told a national gambling forum that she had been working intensely with both industry representatives and government officials in order to produce an attractive framework that will be fully compliant with European law.
Initial doubts regarding Romania’s gambling laws were first raised by the European Commission in 2010, with the advertising restrictions placed on companies operating within Romania but based outside of its borders judged to breach internal market rules.
Greek authorities sued over licence inaction
Two egaming operators, believed to be William Hill and Betfair, have launched legal proceedings against both the Hellenic Gaming Commission (HGC) and the Greek Ministry of Finance after their licence applications went unanswered.
The petition argues their applications should have been processed and decided upon by both authorities and could be due compensation having ended operations in the country.
The two companies, which are both members of the Remote Gambling Association (RGA), originally applied to the Greek state for a licence to operate in the country in July 2013, however the HGC responded by declaring itself to not be the competent authority to consider applications.
Poll results: Gambling Commission should regulate sports spread betting
A conclusive 80% of eGaming Review readers believe the responsibility for sports spread betting in the UK should be transferred to the Gambling Commission.
At present, responsibility for regulating the two sports spread betting businesses, Sporting Index and Spreadex, currently sits with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
However, this set-up has come under scrutiny of late following a series of debates related to the Gambling Bill as it makes its way through parliament.