KSA starts to monitor Dutch igaming blocks

The Dutch regulator has chosen 25 igaming websites to monitor to check that they are blocking Dutch customers.

The Netherlands.- The Dutch gaming regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has begun its new strict enforcement regime against unlicensed gaming operators.

Ahead of the launch of the Netherlands’ regulated igaming market at the start of October, the regulator had said it would adopt a tougher approach to unlicensed operators, requiring them to block Dutch players rather than merely avoid targeting them.

As a result, several major igaming operators began blocking Dutch gamblers while they prepare to make their own bids for Dutch igaming licences.

The KSA has now selected 25 gambling sites to monitor in order to check that they are blocking Dutch customers. It said it would issue sanctions against any of the 25 that is found to accept players from the Netherlands. It said it may also sanction third parties such as payment providers and advertisers.

The regulator said: “The reason for this new policy is that the amended Gambling Act has made it possible to legally offer games of chance via the internet since October 1. At legal providers, participants in games of chance can play in a safe environment, in which there is a reliable game and sufficient attention for gambling addiction. 

“An objective of the law is to ‘channel’ players from illegal to legal providers.”

So far, the KSA has licensed 10 operators to offer regulated igaming in the Netherlands.