KSA chief René Jansen claims success in reducing illegal gambling
The chair of the Dutch gambling regulator says the Netherlands’ approach has been effective.
The Netherlands- René Jansen, chair of the Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has said that the Netherlands’ approach has largely been effective in reducing illegal gambling. Speaking at ICE London, he said tough measures introduced on the launch of the regulated online gambling market last October have been successful.
Jansen said the Netherlands’ decision to clampdown on all unlicensed operators, not only those actively targeting Dutch customers, had helped to dissuade unlicensed operators from offering their services. Several major operators decided to block Dutch players from October 1. They include Kindred Group, which saw its Q1 revenue fall by 30 per cent as a result.
In his update, Jansen said the KSA had investigated 158 unlicensed operators since regulated online gambling went live. It found that 142 of those had taken action to prevent Dutch players from being able to access their services. He said that the remaining 16 would be subject to further investigation and possible sanctions. He noted that some of them were already offline in the Netherlands due to legal orders.
Jansen said: “This was exactly the intention of the new law; the legal offer had to push the illegal offer away. With legal providers, the player is assured of a fair game and attention to preventing gambling addiction.”
KSA processing 30 more online gaming licence applications
Meanwhile, Jansen revealed that the KSA is still processing 30 applications for Dutch online gambling licences. The regulator received a flurry of applications at the end of March as the cooling-off period of operators that had been active in the unregulated market came to an end.
“There were already 16 applications; in the last week of March, 14 more were added,” the KSA said.
The regulator said its experience so far was that about one in three applicants succeeds in meeting its conditions for a permit.
As for calls from Dutch politicians for a crackdown on gambling advertising, Jansen said he had been “disappointed that the gaming sector has not been able to muster the control that has been requested”.
The Dutch minister for legal protection Franc Weerwind has promised new rules setting “sharp, clear standards” as controversy continues over the quantity of gambling ads. Dutch politicians have been calling for a ban on gambling ads due to their “proliferation” since the regulated market went live.
Meanwhile, Jansen has noted that according the KSA’s annual report, the Dutch online gambling market may be smaller than predicted. The KSA reported that in the five months between the launch of licensed online gaming on October 2 and the start of March, 634,000 online gaming accounts were created.
However, the regulator said the number of players was likely to be “considerably lower” than that because it has no data on how many players have opened accounts with more than one operator.
