COMPLAINTS DELAY DANISH ONLINE GAMBLING REGS

Posted on 12/6/10 –  Speculation abounds as news of more complaints surface
 
The much delayed introduction of a more open Danish online gambling market  has been exacerbated by further complaints to the European Commission from local land casino operators and the local slot machine association, according to media reports surfacing over the weekend.
 
The main reason for complaint appears to be the proposed 20 percent tax rate which has been proposed by the government, considerably less than the 41 percent paid by land gambling licensees. The government remains confident that it can prevail, with a spokesman recently asserting that the proposals were in compliance with EU law.
 
Other complaints from the wider industry relate to the mandatory requirement in the new law that applicants cease all online gambling activity involving Danish players until such time as their licenses are issued; this has been widely perceived as giving selected Danish licensees an unfair head start in the liberalised market.
 
Opinions differ on how long the European Commission may take to give its view on the issue, but it seems likely that this could take months, perhaps going beyond the "before this summer" estimate suggested by some observers, and certainly longer than the previously hoped for date of January 1 2011.