Gambling in Norway: Norsk Tipping fined for too high jackpot

The state-controlled gambling operator must pay €380,000.

Norway.- The Norwegian state-owned monopoly gambling operator Norsk Tipping has been hit with a fine of NOK4.5m (€380,000) for paying out a jackpot that was too high. The Norwegian gambling regulator Lotteritilsynet ruled that a jackpot paid out by the operator’s KongKasino online casino brand was far over the maximum allowed under Norwegian gambling legislation.

The illegal jackpot paid out on March 1 was worth NOK25m (€2.1m) while Norwegian Gambling Act sets a maximum jackpot of NOK5m and a maximum standard prize of NOK100,000.

Norsk Tipping said that the pay out was made by mistake owing to a technical problem that it had not realised. It was the customer who reported the incident to Norsk Tipping, and the customer has since refunded the erroneous payment. Norsk Tipping said it had modified its systems in order to ensure that checks are now made on all prizes above the amount of NOK100,000. That compares to a previous threshold of NOK50m.

Lotteritilsynet said that while Norsk Tipping may not have been able to predict all technical incidents, it had a responsibility to meet legal requirements. It said the previous threshold for prizes to be checked was far too high.

It said: “We wish to point out that Norsk Tipping offers several games for which the regulated prize limits are set significantly lower to prevent gambling problems. It is very rare that prizes over NOK50m are paid out by the company.

Lotteritilsynet director Atle Hamar added: “Norsk Tipping did not have good enough security measures for prize payouts when the error occurred. This is a serious system failure. They have subsequently introduced measures, and we have considered that in the assessment of the fine.”

Norsk Tipping has the right to appeal. Meanwhile, Norway’s main opposition party, Høyre, has announced that it is in favour of opening the Norwegian gambling market to competition. The party has adopted a policy to end the long-established state monopoly in the sector as part of its manifesto for the next general election in September 2025.

The move marks a change in policy for Høyre, which was the leading party in government in Norway from 2013 to 2021. During its last tenure in power, it was in favour of maintaining the monopolies of Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto.