Revised draft of Netherlands egaming bill submitted

Operators with an eye on the Dutch egaming market got their first look at the country’s latest egaming bill today after a revised draft was submitted to the European Commission.

The bill, an early version of which was unveiled almost a year ago, details the government’s licensing framework which it intends to launch in early 2015.

While the vast majority of the proposals remain the same, today’s update states that operators will no longer have to base their servers in the Netherlands and highlights a number of potential charitable obligations.

It also confirms there will be no pre-launch period for incumbent operators, a move local lotteries had pushed for, having claimed remote firms would have an unfair advantage in the fight for market share.

Justin Franssen, partner and head of gaming at Dutch law firm Kalff Katz & Franssen, said the bill could face further changes after the review of the Bill at the Council of State where it currently sits, and later when it is debated in parliament.

“Overall the Ministry of Justice seems to have implemented some of the key elements that were pointed out by stakeholders during the consultation period,” Franssen said.

Politicians have claimed the Netherlands remains on track for a 1 January 2015 launch, however commentators are broadly united in believing that deadline is overly ambitious.

The jostling for position in a regulated Dutch market has already kicked-off with Betsson last week completing a €130m acquisition of local online casino brands Oranje and Kroon a move CEO Magnus Silfverberg said would place Betsson at the top of the market.