KSA fines LCS Limited for offering unlicensed gambling

The Dutch gambling regulator has issued a €2.1m fine against the Malta-based operator.

The Netherlands.- The Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has issued a €2.1m fine against LCS Limited for offering gambling in the Netherlands without a licence. The KSA said the Malta-based operator had continued to target the country via its site Sonofslots.com, putting it in violation of Dutch law.

The KSA originally issued a €165,000 fine against LCS in August 2022 and ordered the operator to cease offering gambling in the Netherlands. Its investigations had found that it was possible to access Sonofslots.com from a Dutch IP address and to log-in, deposit funds and play. The Netherlands and the country’s telephone code appeared as an option in drop-down menus.

The regulator added that Similarweb analytics showed regular traffic from the Netherlands. It also found that the site failed to verify players’ ages on sign up. Malta Gaming Authority-licensed LCS disputed the KSA’s findings, arguing that Similarweb’s data was inaccurate and that the KSA’s estimate of its revenue was “not based on established facts”.

However, the KSA argued that offering the site is prohibited and that services such as Similarweb are the best tools it has at its disposal to estimate traffic.

It said: “LCS is free to provide verifiable information about itself. Such data could lead to the Gaming Authority adjusting the relevant variables. To date, LCS has not indicated that it wishes to make use of this option.”

The KSA later found that LCS had blocked access in the Netherlands, but says the fine remains. It noted that the penalty payment and the administrative fine are two different types of sanctions.

KSA chairman René Jansen added: “An order subject to penalty is an often very effective method to immediately stop illegal supply. However, illegal providers who subsequently black out should not think that they have ‘bought off’ their illegal activities: the previously committed violations can also be punished. In addition, we continue to carry out re-checks to verify whether the supply has actually been and will continue to be discontinued.”

In its latest report, the KSA noted that the growth of the Netherlands’ regulated online market, which opened in October 2021, appeared to be levelling off. The number of active licences to operate on the market has grown from an initial 10 on its launch to 27, following the launch of LeoVegas.

Gross gaming result (BSR), as the KSA refers to net gambling revenue, has grown with the expansion of the market. However, the latest figures show that the growth appears to be stagnating. BSR for the 12 months from August 2022 to July 2023 was €1.3bn. Revenue grew by 33 per cent from August 2022 to January 2023 but by 8 per cent from January 2023 to August 2023.