Casino Choice UK News Archive
French authorities detain gambling executives
Manfred Bodner and Norbert Teufelberger, executives of the Austrian online company Bwin, were taken into custody on Friday during a press conference for the unveiling of their sponsorship of a football team from Monaco. They were accused of “organising illegal bets online” and of “advertising online betting”.
Whilst the arrests have sent further shockwaves through an industry already reeling from the detention in the US of two UK executives, they have also attracted the interest of the European Commission.
The EC has for sometime been investigating the gambling monopolies of various EU member states following complaints from gaming firms that they contravene EU laws. The French, for example, have banned online betting, yet the state-owned French Lottery and two state-owned bookmaking operations are in the practice of accepting wagers placed online.
For its part a Bwin spokesman said the company planned to sue the French authorities: “This is violating European laws. There will be a number of lawsuits. This is really outrageous.”
Whilst the arrests have sent further shockwaves through an industry already reeling from the detention in the US of two UK executives, they have also attracted the interest of the European Commission.
The EC has for sometime been investigating the gambling monopolies of various EU member states following complaints from gaming firms that they contravene EU laws. The French, for example, have banned online betting, yet the state-owned French Lottery and two state-owned bookmaking operations are in the practice of accepting wagers placed online.
For its part a Bwin spokesman said the company planned to sue the French authorities: “This is violating European laws. There will be a number of lawsuits. This is really outrageous.”
Submitted: 2006/09/20 at 11:44:03
