In Holland, Dutch gaming regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has continued its move against affiliate websites that promote online casinos operating without a national license in the Netherlands.
While investigating over 20 websites the regulator found that 15 of them were apparently breaking the law there by violating the Dutch Gambling Act. Following a warning, a variety of responses can ensue from no action to the first line of defense which includes issuing cease and desist orders followed by further monitoring before deciding to escalate enforcement action.
Online gambling affiliate marketing operates under several different models with the end result always being that a website operator who delivers tagged traffic to a gambling operator will receive some sort of monetary or other valuable compensation.
None of the affiliate websites were identified to the public nor were the gambling venues that were being promoted. However, the regulator indicated that at least 13 of the initial 22 investigations could result in penalties for the website operators, with 2 domains under continuing review.
Ongoing Enforcement Actions
All online gambling was considered illegal in the Netherlands prior to the implementation of the oft-delayed Remote Gambling Act (KOA) which went into full effect on October 1, 2021, with 10 operators being granted licenses. However, enforcement actions began well before the launch with 70 websites facing scrutiny in multiple rounds of actions beginning in July 2019.
In regard to the latest round of inquiries, the KSA stated: “Offering games of chance without a license is prohibited; the same applies to advertising games of chance that are not licensed. With affiliate marketing, sites receive money when they click through to the online game of chance and the KSA periodically conducts research into these advertisers.”
If the newly warned websites continue to promote gambling operations in the Netherlands they could be subject to financial penalties. Some of the sites may stop advertising in the market altogether and others may vet their partners more carefully and only promote licensed entities to avoid sanctions.
Operator Sanctions Extend Beyond Active Promotion
Operators without a national license on the other hand can be sanctioned not only for participating in promotional activities but by simply accepting sign-ups and bets from Dutch residents. That was the case in September when the KSA levied a fine of €531,250 on Tipico for accepting players from the Kingdom even though Dutch players were not specifically targeted in any marketing campaigns. The N1 Interactive gambling site, Betchan.com (see here) was hit with a €500,000 fine in October for activities dating back to January 2020. N1 has appealed those decisions to the court.
The KSA publishes a gambling guide that lists all licensed online operators and includes search tools as well as simple lists in four categories of gambling – casino games played against a license holder, licensed games played against other players, horse racing, and sports betting.
The longest list is that of online casino games played against the license holder with 29 entries to date which includes Holland Casino, Batavia (Play North Limited), and Hillside (Bet365).
Source:
Dutch regulator takes action against 15 affiliate websites, iGaming Business, December 3, 2021
