A Hague court ruled that Swedish iGaming operator Betsson’s claim against the Dutch gambling authority, Kansspelautoriteit, was inadmissible. The gambling group sought a court’s decision earlier this year, arguing that the regulatory body’s tightened iGaming rules violated EU regulations.
In May, Kansspelautoriteit introduced a new set of rules in relation to the provision of online gaming services in the country. Those new rules significantly limited foreign operators’ opportunities to target Dutch players.
For instance, gambling websites were prohibited from using Dutch-sounding domains and typically Dutch symbols to attract players from the country. What is more, operators were banned from accepting players from .nl affiliate websites. Kansspelautoriteit explained its move back then with its intentions to present more clarity over the provision of gambling services within the Netherlands’ borders. The gambling regulator also stressed on the fact that online gambling was prohibited in the country and that it has never tolerated the provision of unlicensed and therefore illegal iGaming operations.
Here it is important to note that despite the lack of a framework for the regulation of remote gambling activities, such activities have been conducted in the Netherlands but not without a certain amount of oversight by the regulator. Thus, Dutch customers were able to play in an unregulated, but relatively safe environment. The new rules, however, represented Kansspelautoriteit’s significantly toughened stance against iGaming.
Many believe that the changes could be interpreted as signals for the approaching regulation of the local online gambling market. An iGaming bill was approved by the Dutch House last summer and it then headed to the Senate. However, the country’s upper legislative chamber has not made much progress on the piece of legislation since then.
Betsson’s Issue
Based in Malta, but originating from the Nordics, Betsson is one of the largest online gambling operators to be servicing European players. In 2014, the operator purchased the Dutch-facing Oranje Casino and Kroon Casino for over €100 million. The two online casinos, similarly to many others, were allowed to operate in the Netherlands as their operations were compliant with Kansspelautoriteit’s previous rules.
Under the regulator’s new rules, both Oranje Casino and Kroon Casino could no longer target Dutch players. The operator claimed that the introduction of the new regulations could be seen as an instance of bad governance by Kansspelautoriteit and that those new regulations were running afoul of EU gambling laws.
Betsson sought help from court and a preliminary injunction on the matter was held on August 31, 2017. Although the Hague court vested with the case was yet to announce its decision, media reports from back then indicated that the ruling would not probably be one the gambling operator would be content with. An official decision was issued on Thursday, September 14, in which the court sided with Kansspelautoriteit.
