The Effect of European Court of Justice Rulings on Online Gambling
European Union
While last month’s rulings by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled in favour of the online gambling industry, when looking at specific cases in Germany and Austria, Hilary Stewart-Jones, senior partner at Berwin Leighton Paisner has voiced her concerns that online gaming in Europe in still in considerable turmoil.
The ECJ ruled against the monopolisation practised in the German and Austrian gaming industries citing freedom to trade and freedom of establishment rights as major civil rights that were being infringed. Despite this, Stewart-Jones claims that “European-facing online operators are not given the comfort they need”.
There are even worrying signs in the UK, where online gambling has traditionally been supported by the government, as it’s likely that a local licensing system will be introduced to discourage offshore operators from accessing the UK market.
However, Stewart-Jones agrees this isn’t necessarily the worst outcome as local licenses show consistency and will stop limited licensing regimes from continuing. Unfortunately though, she is less optimistic about the current situation as worries that operators may end up needing to require a myriad of licenses to operate in specific areas. The overriding feeling coming out of Stewart-Jones’ comments is that while advances are being made to ensure that online gaming in Europe is fair, there seems to be a considerable way to go.
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