EU BYTES
EU Bytes I
would like to start with a big thank you to Jon Bruford, our esteemed Managing Editor who joined Jochim and me on our podcast on the global casino industry. We obviously didn’t stop
there. We went on to talk about great trashy movies, sports and betting. What fun we had, so please listen in on
www.anchor.fm/ consultingontap.
Digital Services Act & Digital Markets Act
In the Casino International October 2020 edition, I discussed one of the hottest topics in Brussels (apart from the vaccination supply and now the related failures in the EU), namely the Digital Services Act (& Digital Markets Act). Things have moved ahead, the debate has been very intense and so, I thought more reason than ever to give you an EU byte to this end.
Why are they important?
As mentioned in the October edition, the legal framework for digital services has been unchanged since the adoption of the e-Commerce Directive in the year 2000. That is 20 years of technological change without the appropriate regulatory framework. And, the DSA & DMA will impact online marketplaces, social media platforms, internet services providers, search engines, video gaming platforms, etc. Regarding gambling, the e-Commerce Directive specifi cally excludes “gambling activities which involve wagering a stake with monetary
“…the DSA seeks to foster innovation, growth and
competitiveness, and facilitate the scaling up of smaller platforms”
value in games of chance, including lotteries and betting transactions.” The DSA & DMA do not mention this specifi cally, but organisations like the European Casino Association, European Lotteries & the World Tote Association have jumped on one very important aspect. It is the notice-and-action mechanism with regard to illegal online content. A very important tool in light of unlicensed advertisement and offer, and therefore illegal gambling.
What is the DSA?
Both published on 15 December 2020, the DSA seeks to foster innovation, growth and competitiveness, and facilitate the scaling up of smaller platforms, SMEs and start-ups. It essentially looks to: • “Better protect consumers and their fundamental rights online
• Establish a powerful transparency and a clear accountability framework for online platforms
• Foster innovation, growth and competitiveness within the single market.”
Glenn Cezanne takes us through the Digital Services Act and its likely impact
And, what is the DSM?
The DSA’s highly debated cousin, the DMA looks specifically at providing a “narrowly defined objective criteria for qualifying a large online platform as a so-called ‘gatekeeper’”. A gatekeeper has a significant economic presence in several EU countries, it is linked to a large number of businesses, and has been pretty solid in terms of existence. In other words, the DMA looks to keep companies like Google and Facebook in check and will allow the Commission to tackle what they call “systemic infringements”. As I said, highly debated which some have said that it is populist in nature. I don’t see a direct impact on the gambling sector as yet, although some fall out regarding advertisement overall can be expected. Nonetheless, I think it worthwhile to give you a breakdown of the dos and don’ts that the Commission is putting out; actually, more the don’ts: • “treat services and products offered by the gatekeeper itself more favourably in ranking than similar services or products offered by third parties on the gatekeeper’s platform
• prevent consumers from linking up to businesses outside their platforms
• prevent users from un-installing any pre-installed software or app if they wish so.”
24 FEBRUARY 2020
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