Compliance Updates
Dutch Government Approves Online Gambling Ad Ban
The Dutch government has published the full draft of its ban on “untargeted” advertising and recruitment by licensed betting companies in the Netherlands, setting a start date of July 1.
From that date, operators in the Netherlands will have to adhere to a much stricter advertising policy. Measures include a ban on televised advertisements and marketing in public places, such as via billiards and on printed media.
Bookmakers will have a little more leeway with online and social media advertising. Companies can continue to do so, but must be able to prove that any material is targeted to audiences aged 24 and older.
The document was submitted to the Hague on April 5 by Franc Weerwind, Minister for Legal Protection at the Ministry of Justice and Security, the long-term architect of the legislation.
Following the regulation of the Dutch online market on 1 October 2021, political observers in the Netherlands have voiced concern about the increase in advertising after the first licences were issued.
Explaining the rationale behind the new restrictions on the Dutch online betting sector less than three years into maturity, Weerwind outlined that “the amount of advertising for remote games of chance has increased sharply”.
“Addiction care and people who have experience with addiction problems have indicated that they have difficulty with the large amount of untargeted advertising,” the Minister wrote.
“Research also shows that advertising for remote games of chance is often seen through channels with a very wide reach. As a result, people with addiction problems for games of chance can hardly escape a confrontation with games of chance advertising in their daily lives.”
Weerwind did acknowledge that advertising fulfils a core function of the KOA Act legislation which regulated the market back in 2021, that being promotion of the regulated offering.
“It should be noted that it is difficult to quantify the exact consequences of the large amount of untargeted advertising and its broad and untargeted reach,” Weerwind continued.
“This is primarily because it is not yet clear how large the number of players that play on the illegal market are and have played in the past.
“It is clear that many Dutch people already played with illegal providers before the market opened, but it is unclear how large this number is exactly, how many players have since switched from illegal to legal providers and what growth of new players there has been.”
Both the government and KSA have observed that marketing by licensed bookmakers directs punters to legal operators that adhere to the player protection standards enforced by the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) gambling authority.
However, legislators and addiction treatment specialists’ main concerns are that advertising may be too far-reaching, potentially exposing young people – meaning those aged 18-24 – and under-age consumers to age-restricted betting products.
By confirming the July 1 launch date for the advertising clampdown, Weerwind remains on track with his most recent legislative objectives, having said in March that the ban would come into force no later than this day.
The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) has fined the Werribee RSL $30,000 for failing to prevent 2 self-excluded customers from gambling.
VGCCC CEO Suzy Neilan said: “This is the first time the VGCCC has taken disciplinary action against a club or hotel for self-exclusion breaches.
“Self-exclusion programs empower people to manage their gambling by registering to be temporarily or permanently blocked from entering gambling areas of clubs, pubs and casinos.
“By failing to respect a person’s decision to self-exclude, a venue may put customers who have decided to take a break from gambling, or quit altogether, at risk of experiencing gambling harm.”
In January 2024, the VGCCC received an anonymous tip-off that a self-excluded person entered the Werribee RSL gaming room and used the poker machines. The venue self-reported a second breach in May 2024, after realising a different customer had gambled at the venue on at least 4 occasions between February and May 2024.
Ms Neilan said: “Taking disciplinary action is the last resort. We would prefer venues take their harm minimisation responsibilities seriously by complying with their legal obligations, including through the effective implementation of tools like self-exclusion.
“Venues and their staff are the last line of defence for self-excluded customers, who should be able to trust that their decision to self-exclude will be respected. They must have the appropriate controls in place to prevent self-excluded people from entering gaming rooms.”
The VGCCC acknowledged that Werribee RSL cooperated with the investigations and has since taken steps to strengthen its procedures. These include improved and regular staff training, daily audits of the self-exclusion register and greater use of technology to identify self-excluded customers who attempt to enter the gaming room.
This remedial action was taken into consideration in determining the amount of the fine.
The post VGCCC Fines Werribee RSL for Self-exclusion Failures appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Konami Gaming Inc. announced successful completion of Gaming-related Vendor Licensing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a key emerging market for commercial gaming. Konami Gaming is among the first in the industry to be awarded a Gaming-Related Vendor License by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), an independent entity of the UAE Federal Government with exclusive jurisdiction to regulate, license, and supervise all UAE commercial gaming activities. A leading global provider of casino games and casino management systems, Konami has been awarded official license to serve the UAE’s developing gaming market with its award-winning products and services.
“Since Konami Gaming’s inception, our global growth has been achieved with an unwavering commitment to compliance. As the United Arab Emirates expands its economy to the regulated commercial gaming space, Konami is dedicated to supporting this market with the same integrity, innovation, and excellence we bring to all 431 gaming jurisdictions we serve worldwide,” said Tom Jingoli, president & chief operating officer at Konami Gaming.
For a quarter century, casino players have enjoyed Konami Gaming’s slot machines for the Class III gaming space, in which game outcomes are determined by random number generators (RNG). The company has since expanded its world-famous casino entertainment to online gaming and a variety of central determination market sectors. Additionally, Konami Gaming has spent over 20 years delivering its industry-leading SYNKROS casino management system to some of the largest and most diverse gaming destinations on earth, with ultra-reliable 99.99% uptime.
The post Konami Gaming Awarded Gaming-related Vendor License in the UAE appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has issued ReadyBet with a remedial direction after the company marketed to customers who had registered with BetStop – the National Self-Exclusion Register (NSER).
An ACMA investigation found ReadyBet sent 273 texts and push notifications from its mobile app to self-excluded individuals.
Separately, the company also failed to promote the NSER in 2342 push notifications despite it being mandatory to promote BetStop in any marketing electronic messages.
The ACMA issued the remedial direction so that ReadyBet takes action to prevent it breaching the rules in the future.
Under the remedial direction, ReadyBet must commission an independent review of its marketing systems, including its use of third-party suppliers.
ReadyBet must also engage a provider to deliver training to its staff to avoid messages being sent to self-excluded individuals.
The ACMA may seek civil penalties if ReadyBet does not comply with the remedial direction.
The post ACMA: ReadyBet Breaches Gambling Self-exclusion Rules appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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