Nordrhein-Westfalen opens tender for online table games

The most populous state in Germany has opened a tender for non-poker online table games.

Germany.- Nordrhein-Westfalen has become the first state to open a tender for concessions to offer online table games under Germany’s new gambling legislation.

The Fourth State Treaty on Gambling, which came into force on July 1, introduces a nationwide licensed market for online slots and poker in Germany but leaves individual states with control over non-poker online table games.

Each of Germany’s 16 federal states may grant concessions to run non-poker table games, whether they use RNGs or live dealers. The exception was made to allow states to maintain a monopoly over the segment if they wish.

Nordrhein-Westfalen is now the first state to open a tender, offering up to five ten-year licences. 

Operators who already have a licence to offer other gaming products will need a separate licence. They may use up to two sites from which to broadcast live banker games.

Meanwhile, the German state of Saxony-Anhalt last month appointed Anne Poggemann as the first head of the Glücksspielaufsicht, Germany’s new gambling’s supervisory authority.

In June, the German legislature, the Bundestag, voted to approve the gaming tax bill that accompanies the country’s new gambling legislation, introducing a 5.3 per cent tax on online slots and poker turnover.

See also: Bet-at-home revenue falls 8.8% due to new regulations in Germany