Dutch market regulator brings down 15 illegal marketers

Dutch market regulator brings down 15 illegal marketers

Dutch market gambling authority, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has taken action against 15 marketers for illegally selling gambling products.

Dutch Online Sports Betting Delayed for Amendments

KSA shuts down illegal marketers

The Dutch Gambling Authority, the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has taken action against 15 marketers, classifying them also-called affiliates’ for marketing unlawful gambling and betting items. 

The Kansspelautoriteit (literally, Gaming Institution) is the Netherlands’ independent regulating authority. It is responsible for regulating gambling and betting in the Netherlands, issuing licenses, and enforcing essential gaming laws and regulations.

The authority, founded in 2012, is governed by a two-member board of directors and an advisory board. The Kansspelautoriteit performs various functions; nevertheless, they have said that one responsibility takes precedence over all others: player safety. The fundamental duty of the gaming authority is to protect players, allowing them to gamble safely, reasonably, and without abuse.

KSA also accomplished this by filling several jobs. It includes regulating the Dutch gaming market through issuing licenses, supervising and enforcing applicable laws and regulations, supervising license holders, and assisting players. 

In part, they accomplished this using CRUKS, a gambling self-exclusion system and database in the Netherlands that enables users to self-exclude from all forms of gaming in the country.

The authorities conducted a total of 22 investigations and discovered that 15 websites were advertising unauthorized online games of chance in breach of the KOA Gambling Act. Thirteen of the fifteen advertisers have been fined or will be fined shortly by Dutch authorities, while an additional two are still under investigation.

The KSA initially imposes a cease and desist order and then conducts follow-up inspections to ensure that the order they have been obeyed. If they have been determining that the infraction repeatedly occurred, the ‘ordered penalty shall be forfeited and must be paid. 

The Kansspelautoriteit recognized that ‘in some cases,’ the affiliates under investigation ‘immediately ceased’ gambling-related operations upon receipt of the cease and desist order and shifted their focus to advertising for licensed legal gambling enterprises.

Offering games of chance without a license has been forbidden under the Gambling Act requirements governing the Netherlands’ newly created online betting and gaming marketplace. 

Limitations imposed by KSA

Additional limitations to the KOA licensing scheme regarding advertising require all regulated operators to market following Dutch television licensing standards, restricting the promotion of games of chance on television between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Moreover, advertising campaigns cannot include endorsements from anyone under 25 or target individuals aged 18 to 24 and sporting personalities that could have been prohibited from supporting betting and gaming companies. The advertising content cannot advocate gambling as a means of earning money for players, and all marketing campaigns must include complete terms and conditions for any offered bonuses.

However, these requirements have come under fire from the Netherlands Online Gambling Association (NOGA), with the organization’s Managing Director, Peter-Paul de Goeji. Arguing that the regime unfairly favors land-based businesses, land-based operators are considering expanding online – due to tighter restrictions on online companies – and lotteries.

About Lou De Aguila

Lou Aguila is a news and feature writer for Golden Casino News. For over a decade, Lou has published news and featured articles for some of the most reputable sports betting and online casino sites in the world, including BetNow.UK, VegasOdds, and BWin. Apart from being a hardcore live casino punter, he also covers sports stories in North American leagues from time to time.