ONLINE NEWS
Germany prepares for changes G
ermany has offered a series of changes to its national gambling laws to make them conform to European Union rules. According to law firm DLA Piper, the draft ‘Second State Treaty Amending the State Treaty on Gambling’ sets out to address the issues that have been picked out on numerous occasions by the European Court of Justice. Proposed changes to the law include sports betting concessions being issued on a qualitative basis, which will cover the lifting of a limit of 20 sports betting concessions and issuing preliminary concessions for the 35 operators found to meet the requirements for a concession. In addition, the state of Hesse will now hand
over its competence to issue sports betting concessions to another state in the country. However, according to DLA Piper, the draft legislation does not include changes regarding
enforcement against unlicensed gambling or regulation of online casinos, thus not addressing concerns raised by the German Council of Games of Chance and the country’s advertising guidelines.
A standstill period during the EU notification procedure will run until February next year, with states in the country hoping to ratify the law before the end of 2017. The State Treaty on Gambling will therefore not come into effect until January 2018 at the earliest.
Reflecting on the timetable, DLA Piper said: “The interim measure of getting orders of approval for sports betting will become more relevant until the concession procedure is realigned by the new State Treaty. Also, the Federal Administrative Court of Germany ruled in a recent decision that if the state monopoly for sports betting persists an administrative prohibition of sports betting without a German sports betting concession would be unlawful. “This decision ties in with a recent decision of the European Court of Justice; there the ECJ ruled that a criminal prosecution of a sports
betting intermediate is contrary to EU law if the licensing process for private sports betting organisers has been held to not conform with EU law by national courts.”
William Hill takes first sports betting licence in Nevada
W
illiam Hill has become the first gambling operator
to acquire a licence to offer betting lines on esports competitions in the US state of Nevada. Working in partnership with the Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino, Hills will now be able to accept wagers on the video gaming contests.
According to the Las Vegas
Sun newspaper, the Nevada Gaming Control Board, which granted the licence, said betting will take place under Regulation 21.120, which allows for “wagers on events other than a horse race, greyhound race or athletic events”. In a
statement, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval said: “This announcement is a major step toward ensuring Nevada becomes the esports capital of the world. By embracing this unique opportunity and incorporating innovation and technology into our gaming
Win Systems signs with Fairbet Group
W
industry, we’re expanding the potential of one of our oldest industries.”
The award of the licence comes at a time when Nevada faces something of an uncertain future in terms
of gambling on esports. Last week, the Nevada Gaming Policy Committee urged gambling regulators in the state to form a new set of rules to establish the state’s stance on esports wagering.
in Systems has brokered a multi-site agreement with Maltese gaming parlour operator Fairbet Group. Under the deal, Win Systems will install its WIGOS casino management system at seven Fairbet sites, connecting a total of 45 terminals. The move represents Win Systems’ first venture into the Maltese market, having already carried out installations in Norway, Ireland and Spain.
“Win Systems has a phenomenal track record of
providing reliable and secure products to casinos around the world and we are only too happy to partner with them,” Fairbet chief executive Antoine Pace said. “The installation of WIGOS is the first of its kind in Malta and after a simple migration, we’re sure that it will be successful for many years to come.”
DECEMBER 2016 47
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62