The State Gambling Commission in Bulgaria has continued to add domains to its blacklist, as it edges slowly towards getting its licensing framework in place.
The highest profile of the ten new additions are RedBet.com and new Watford FC shirt sponsor 138’s global.138.com, with Bensbingo.com, Goldbetting.com, Energycasino.com, Eurocasinobet.com, Cardcasino.com, Thelotter.com, Geobet.com and Azcasino.com also appearing.
The BGC last week removed three sites from its blacklist of sites it claimed were actively targeting Bulgarian players without a local licence, including PartyPoker.com, but the 113-strong list still contains sites which don’t even offer a Bulgarian-language option, such as William Hill, and others which exited the market some time ago, such as Offsidebet.
Most of Europe’s leading online operators, including PokerStars, William Hill, PartyPoker, Bet365, 888, Betfair, Ladbrokes, Betfred, Sportingbet, Bet-At-Home, Betsson, BetVictor and Unibet, have domains listed.
The companies are “presumed notified on the day of publication” of the BGC’s decision, and have been given three days to voluntarily block Bulgarian players from accessing their websites or be subject to a court order compelling local ISPs to suspend access, with these service providers being obligated to do so within 24 hours of the court order being published on the Commission’s website.
Operators are currently unable to apply for licences as the BGC has thus far failed to put the necessary regulations in place, despite the country amending its Gambling Act in July 2012 to provide a framework for the regulation of online operators. The government has also proposed an unworkable tax regime of 15% of stakes.
There are however signs Bulgarian authorities are edging closer to opening the licence application process, recently approving regulations for a list of approved gaming equipment testing labs to be drawn up.
Article written by Katy Stirland
