Regulation round-up 8 May 2012
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (2 May to 8 May 2012).
Schleswig-Holstein awards first egaming licences
JAXX, Betfair and NordwestLotto announced as first three licensed operators – remaining 23 sports betting and 14 casino and poker applicants wait for news in “coming weeks”.
JAXX SE, Betfair and Die NordwestLotto Schleswig-Holstein have been announced as the first three operators to be awarded an online gambling licence in the German Land of Schleswig-Holstein and, from today, will be able to offer their customers regulated online sports and exchange betting.
The licences were granted this morning by the Schleswig-Holstein Interior Minister Klaus Schlie and will see the company launch a dot.de variant of its Mybet site, offering sports betting, with applications for casino and poker likely to be ratified in time to launch the products by the summer.
A Betfair spokesman said the company was preparing to put out an RNS “imminently” to the market announcing that its exchange betting licence application had been accepted in Germany’s northernmost state – the only state in which online gambling is now fully regulated.
The exchange betting operator’s chief legal and regulatory affairs officer Martin Cruddace commented: “We are delighted to have been awarded one of the first three licences to operate in Schleswig Holstein. We look forward to making a significant and sustainable contribution to the newly formed market there, offering consumers innovative products in a safe and responsible betting environment.
Opinion: Schleswig-Holstein creates precedent days before elections
The Government of Schleswig Holstein, Germany’s northernmost state, announced Thursday that it had issued the first three licences for online sports betting operators under the new regional Gambling Act.
Betfair (via Polco Limited), Jaxx (via Personal Exchange International) and Schleswig-Holstein-owned Nordwestlotto/Oddset are the first operators that are now officially licensed to provide online sports betting services to customers in Schleswig-Holstein. An additional 37 applications have been submitted to the competent Ministry of Interior (23 for sports betting, 14 for online casino games) that announced that further licences would be issued in the next couple of weeks.
Seven days in regulation:
Bulgaria to issue gambling licences by July
Following the passage of legislation in the Bulgarian parliament in March this year, the founder and honorary member Bulgarian Gaming Association (BTAMOGI) has revealed that the first licences are likely to be issued by 1 July.
Speaking to gambling news portal Yogonet, Rossi McKee explained the new regulatory framework includes provisions for online gambling operators for the first time. Under the terms of regulation, operators will have to pay tax on 17% of gross profit and have at least five years’ experience of operating in the market, as well as a physical presence in the country.
The bill, which was passed to the European Union (EU) in March last year, also mandates internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to unlicensed sites, and implements a blanket ban on all gambling advertising. The EU ratified the proposals later in 2011, saying: “The draft Law complies with European standards in this sphere and is consistent with the functioning of a common market.
Online poker for Massachusetts in 2013, claims Winslow
Online poker sites could go live in Massachusetts next year, according Representative Dan Winslow who is pushing for amendments to state gambling laws for the second consecutive year.
In an interview with eGaming Review North America, Winslow expressed optimism for online poker regulation following efforts in April to include online poker legislation within an economic development bill.
The amendments would see licence holders pay a fee of US$10m dollars and be subject to a 25% gross revenues tax.
Exclusive: SkyBet applies for Italian licence
SkyBet, via its UK-listed parent company BSkyB, has applied for an Italian online gaming licence, eGaming Review can exclusively reveal.
eGR has learned that the UK operator, on course to record more than £100m in full-year revenues in 2012, has paid around 300,000 for an Italian online gaming licence to local regulator AAMS, however it is yet to decide how it will proceed there, if it does at all. It is also not known at present what products the licence would cover, however Sky Italia is known not to be involved in the application.
A spokesman for the company yesterday confirmed the news saying that despite “not having any plans to expand overseas”, it had applied for a gaming licence in Italy, describing it as a “prudent move and one which will help us keep our options open for the future.”
Lottomatica live casino launches in Italy
Evolution Gaming’s live online casino service has gone live in Italy with Lottomatica, the technology provider has announced this morning.
The choice of its live casino product “ the first solution of its kind to be approved by Italian regulator AAMS, has enabled Lottomatica to “rapidly add” real-time online casino table games to its lottery, instant win, VLT and sports betting operations in Italy, the company said in a statement today.
AAMS signs anti-Mafia MoU
The Italian egaming regulator AAMS has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Italy’s National Anti-Mafia Directorate in a bid to stamp out the involvement of criminal organisations in the country’s gambling industry.
The five-year agreement will see the associations look to develop methods of sharing information in order to improve the efficiency of each body’s anti-corruption strategies, spot anomalies in betting patterns, and create synergies which will allow incidences of Mafia involvement to be quickly reported to regional prosecutors’ offices.
LGA signs IOC agreement
Maltese regulatory body the Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Olympic Committee’s International Sports Monitoring Body (ISM), aimed at helping investigate suspicious betting patterns during this summer’s games.
Under the terms of the deal, which seeks to target suspected “insider betting”, the LGA and its licensees have pledged to “Provide the necessary assistance to ensure the effective workings of the ISM and deter gamblers with malicious intent.”