Bet365, 888, Betfair and Ladbrokes were among 20 names on the Bulgarian Gambling Commission’s first blacklist of websites offering online gambling without a local licence.
Following a meeting yesterday, the Commission exercised its powers under the new Gambling Act which came into force in July 2012 to “compile, update and maintain” on its website a list of internet sites “wherethrough games of chance are organised by persons who have not obtained a licence under this Act”.
Other high-profile operators with their dot.com domains on the 20-strong list include Betfred, Sportingbet, Bet-At-Home and Unibet.
Another operator on the list, Offsidebet, is no longer active in the market, having taken the decison to exit some four months ago, Casino Choice understands.
Under the law, the companies are “presumed notified on the day of publication” of the BGC’s decision, and given three days to block Bulgarian players from accessing their websites.
Failure to do so will see the Commission apply for a court order compelling ISPs to suspend access to the sites, with these service providers being obligated to do so within 24 hours of the court order being published on the Commission’s website.
Any persons found to be organising games without a local licence also face a minimum fine of BGN20,000 (approx £8,700), rising as high as BGN5m (approx. £2.2m) if the proceeds from the unauthorised games of chance exceed BGN5m.
All the operators on the list are however “organising games” from outside of Bulgaria, presumably making enforcement difficult for the local authorities.
The new Gambling Act for the first time provided a framework for regulation of online operators, but the licensing process has yet to open. Important details, such as the level of tax to be levied on operators, were not included in the Act and remain unresolved at this stage.
Article written by Stephen Carter
