EGBA warns Norwegian government

The association told the government not to continue blocking payment transactions on remote gambling services.

Norway.- The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) has called upon the Norwegian authorities to stop the directive to block transactions to and from foreign gaming websites. The warning comes after the Norwegian government adopted new rules to prevent foreign operators from targetting local players.

Through a statement, the EGBA suggested that the government introduce a modern online gambling regulation, open to competition, which protects consumers and reflects consumer choice and the reality of the digital age of borderless internet instead of counterproductive payment blocking measures.

The association said that it fully supports the Norwegian government’s objective to create a well-regulated and controlled environment for online gambling in order to fully protect consumers, but believes that a transparent and non-discriminatory licensing regime, open to all gambling operators who can fulfil the regulatory requirements set by the Norwegian authorities, is a more appropriate and effective means to achieve this.

Moreover, it said that blocking payments on foreign websites is not an effective nor realistic measure to regulate the internet. EGBA also raised concerns regarding the legality of the proposals under Norwegian and EU law and has already initiated court proceedings challenging similar payment blocking initiatives in Norway.

Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA, said: “From a consumer perspective, there are only two licensed gambling providers in Norway – both state-owned – and this is just not sustainable in an age when consumers can easily search around the internet for their preferred choice of gaming product.

“A fundamental rethink and reworking of the Norwegian online gaming regime is therefore necessary to ensure that local and foreign operators can co-exist and have equal access to a well-regulated market which meets the realities of consumer demand for different gaming products. This can be easily achieved through a national licensing regime, such has been recently introduced in Sweden, which would enable the Norwegian gambling authority to bring the activity of foreign websites under its control, alongside existing state-owned operators. That’s exactly what the overwhelming majority of European countries have been doing, and that’s exactly what we are urging Norway to do,” Haijer added.