The German federal state of Schleswig-Holstein has issued seven new online casino licences, just a day before the crucial vote in its parliament on its disputed Gambling Act.
New licensees include Victor Chandler, Interwetten, Roxy Palace brand owners Megapixel Entertainment and Cherryforetagen-owned PlayCherry Ltd, with OngoingMedia, World of Sportsbetting, and Greentube Malta the other recipients of new permits from Germany’s northernmost Land.
SH has now issued 20 licences for online casino, including poker, despite these activities being banned under the Interstate Gambling Treaty (ITG) which SH’s government is looking to join. Many of Europe’s leading online operators, including 888, Betfair, Ladbrokes, PokerStars, bet365 and bwin.party, now hold permits from SH, which has also issued 22 licences for online sportsbetting.
The federal parliament is due to vote tomorrow on legislation to repeal the Gambling Act passed by the last government and join the other 15 federal states in the ITG. The SPD-Green-SSW ruling coalition has declared its intent to adopt the legislation despite such a move exposing Germany to possible infringement proceedings by the European Commission.
The national sports betting-only Treaty provides for the issue of just 20 licences, taxed at a prohibitive 5% of stakes, with a blanket ban on online casino and poker, compared to SH’s EU-complaint framework which provides for the issue of unlimited licences for all major products based on a more sustainable 20% gross profit tax.
The EC standstill period for review of the draft expired on 7 January following a delay caused by the EC and Malta issuing detailed opinions against it, meaning SH could adopt the measures. However, the EC has confirmed to Casino Choice that the conclusion of this procedure was “without prejudice to any possible legal steps that the Commission might decide to take in the future regarding the same measure, once adopted.”
The EC raised doubts over the compliance of the draft with European law, given its proposed switch from an open and transparent licensing regime to a restrictive and opaque one within just 12 months. The EC also criticised the lack of coherency in German gambling law represented by having two parallel regulatory frameworks within Germany.
In what could prove a critical day in deciding the future direction of Germany’s online gambling market, the country’s Federal Court of Justice is also due to rule tomorrow on whether the existence of parallel licensing regimes breaches EU law. This followed the EC disagreeing with its 2011 decision that restrictions on the freedom to provide gambling services in the EU, as constituted by the ITG’s ban on online poker and casino, could be justified in terms of providing enhanced consumer protection, as required under EU rules.
Article written by Stephen Carter
