GAMBLING NEWS
Online gaming banning expanding
Jun 7, 2010
We are certain that governments and some of their delegates have nothing better to do, than to spoil online players fun. Just as we reported a few days ago about the gambling legislation changing in France, it seems that it has spread over to Norway as well. It has come to our attention that online payment processors are being requested not to accept players from Norwegian origins and residing in Norway for the purposes of playing at an online casino or any gambling related product.
The same rules took effect in the US a couple of years ago and it is still being debated at the highest level to get it regulated and to get it legalized. Players are being pushed from pillar to post when it comes to online gambling as its totally acceptable in some countries and markets and illegal in other markets. As per usual the local Norwegian government has its favourites when it comes to providing licences. There are currently only 2 online companies legal to operate in Norway namely Norske Tipping and Rikstoto.
So where to from here for online players in Norway? According to news sources, a main player in the area of online casino and sportsbook software Playtech has already applied for an online license for this profitable country. Some of Playtech customers like Europa Casino will become even more profitable if the Norwegian government decides to provide Playtech with an online license to provide games of chance in Norway. Currently if online players want to make use of online payment processors like PayPal it would be blocked and no gaming can take place.
What makes this decision to stop accepting online deposits to online casino for Norwegian players is that it can attract the attention from the European Commission. There is however one vital stat that people must take into consideration, Norway is not a member state of the EU, but it does fall within the border of the EU. We’ll have to keep a close eye on the development on this case. As from 1 June 2010 online players residing in Norway are only allowed to make use of Norwegian Internet Casino providers.
One can only take positives out of this scenario, as there are licenses being applied for and we are certain that online gambling licenses will be granted to outside online gaming companies. Online Poker has become a household favorite within Norway’s borders and it’s closely followed by online casinos. By the use of online deposit methods like Neteller, the online player based in Norway can enjoy the many games on offer by the various online gambling companies focusing on Norway. A great advantage is that Playtech is involved with a company called Scientific Games Corporation which signed a 12 year deal with Norsk Tipping. Taking that scenario into consideration, time will tell that Norway will open up to online gambling
