Free and Fair Online Gambling for Denmark

November 13, 2009 | News Category: Gaming Law

0 Comments

European Union member states have been told to comply with certain guidelines regarding free trade when it comes to dealing with online casino legislation. Even though the European Union’s rules require compliance, many European countries are trying to get out of operating their online gambling operations by the free trade guidelines.

While many EU countries have looked for legal loopholes to avoid compliance, Denmark has come up with a plan for free and fair online gambling. Not only does their plan comply with the letter of the law, but also with the spirit in which the law was intended.

Not only has Denmark found a system for free trade when it comes to online gambling, they have also found a solution that allows fair competition on all the levels of gaming that are offered. The rules that Denmark plans to introduce include competitive rules for gambling operators across the board.

As the first country to respond in a positive manner to the rules issued by the European Commission, there is hope that other countries will follow their example, and find a way to open up their gambling laws to free and fair competition. At this time, other Scandinavian countries are still trying to protect their state monopolies, while trying to also conform with the regulations laid out by the EU.

Although Denmark is planning to open their gambling market to foreign-based operations, there is one small glitch as far as the EU is concerned. The EU rules state that if an online gambling operation is already licensed in another EU member nation, then it should be able to operate freely within the European Union. Denmark, while allowing foreign operators to operate in their country, do require that the foreign operators apply for a Denmark gaming license. One wonders if the EC will overlook this minor discrepancy, since this is the first member state to try to comply with the regulations that have been laid out.

The online gambling world has been going through somewhat of a slump recently, although it has been predicted that the online gambling market will soon be picking up again. One of the reasons for the expected growth in the online gambling market is the opening of new markets in the European Union. Although the EU still has some way to go before they can say that their free trade rules have been fully complied with, a move in the right direction has certainly begun.

While commenting on the future of online gambling in Europe, Ralph Topping, the William Hill CEO, told the Times that "We are extremely confident about the next two to three years in Europe."