The French litigation: reputation management
Given the restrictions already due to be imposed by France's new online gambling regulator, the legal action by the casinos against 888, Bwin, Sportingbet and Unibet might seem curiously timed, observes April Carr, a competition lawyer at Olswang, but suggests some strategic thinking on their part...
THE legal action commenced by French land-based casino operators against online gambling operators 888, Bwin, Sportingbet and Unibet this week demonstrates the continued ill-will faced by online operators in France.
Three land-based casino groups and a trade body allege that the operators have been offering skill games online in contravention of both the current and proposed gaming laws. Unsurprisingly, the online operators have denied the allegations and have also questioned the ability of a French court to hear the proceedings or prosecute companies with no legal presence in France.
The draft French gambling legislation will allow online operators to become licensed to provide sports betting, horse-race pool-betting and poker, but not casino games.
It will be an offence to advertise and offer unlicensed services, and the new regulatory authority, Arjel, will have the power to force ISPs to block websites to prevent access by French citizens.
In practice, it is very difficult to restrict citizens from accessing ‘illegal’ gaming sites, although the Italian system, which is not dissimilar to that proposed in France, is believed to have had some success in this respect.
Once the legislation comes into force, however, stopping unlicensed gaming operators from offering their services to French citizens will fall squarely within Arjel’s remit. So why commence legal action now?
Perhaps the French casino operators have been inspired by the success of the Portuguese gambling authority Santa Casa against Bwin in the European Court of Justice and, more recently, the Advocate General’s Opinion which effectively approved the Dutch gambling regime. In essence, the European Court’s recent findings accept that, with adequate justifications, a protectionist regime does not necessarily breach EU laws.
Also, the French minister responsible for implementing the new laws has warned that he will not tolerate advertising or promotion prior to the opening of the market, and that licences will not be granted to operators who contravene the current rules.
Online gambling operators will not want to risk losing the opportunity to become licensed in France for whatever reason: litigation based on allegations of that kind will be even less welcome than usual.
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