Regulation round-up 27 June 2017
The biggest regulatory news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (21 June to 27 June 2017)
CMA launches enforcement action against five online gambling operators
Competition watchdog says it suspects a number of firms are in breach of consumer law for “confusing” sign-up conditions and account withdrawal restrictions
Five online gambling operators, including Ladbrokes and William Hill, face enforcement action from the UK’s competition watchdog for potential breaches of consumer law.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it would take action after an investigation found customers were not getting the deal they expected from sign-up offers due to “confusing” terms and conditions.
It also claimed some operators were “unfairly” preventing customers from withdrawing money from their accounts as minimum withdrawal amounts were far bigger than the original deposit, as well as a number of other hurdles.
Lottoland hit with £150,000 fine for advertising failings
The Gambling Commission has fined Lottoland £150,000 for failing to make clear to consumers they were betting on a lottery outcome rather than participating in the draw itself.
The fine is a follow up to an ASA ruling back in February which declared that a Lottoland radio advert had failed to clearly make the distinction.
The ASA’s ruling sparked a Gambling Commission investigation, which ultimately found Lottoland was similarly “ambiguous” in its third party marketing, website and social media promotions.
UK operators to be forced to show customers their three month P&L
UK operators will be forced to show customers their profit/loss numbers across all verticals for the prior three months, under new changes to the remote gambling and software technical standards (RTS) published next week.
The change is part of the first major update to the RTS since 2007, and follows a lengthy period of consultation with the industry.
Unibet wins European Court judgment against Hungary’s licensing laws
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled that Hungary’s gambling legislation restricts the EU’s principle of freedom to provide services, in a judgment that could force other European countries to relax their regulatory frameworks.
In the longstanding case between the Hungarian state and Unibet, the Court determined that certain licensing requirements put foreign operators at an unfair disadvantage, specifically a clause that requires operators to prove they had held a presence in Hungary for 10 years.
Swedish parliament moves to support problem gamblers
Local councils in Sweden will be required to provide support to problem gamblers under a new amendment passed by Swedish parliament.
The amendment to the Social Services and Health Care Act rules that “compulsive gambling is a serious problem” and as damaging to public health as drug and alcohol abuse.
Municipal councils will actively work to counter gambling abuse from young people in particular.