European Commission Grants Denmark’s Online Gambling Proposal

The online gambling proposal made by Denmark was granted by the European Commission (EC) despite the complaints made against the proposal by the Danish slot machine association and a Danish land Casino.   Basically, the primary problem that the casino and association had with the offer was that they pay anywhere from 45% - 71% in gross gaming revenue taxes while licensed online casino operators would only have to pay 20% tax, which is in violation of State Aid rules, according to them.

Nonetheless, the EC ruled in favor of Denmark and the new Danish internet gambling laws will come into effect on January 1, 2012.   There will be two different types of licenses that private gambling operators will be eligible to attain.  The first offers internet and non-internet sports wagering.  The second is for online casino sites who will offer slots, blackjack, poker, bridge, backgammon, roulette and whist games.

The ruling by the European Commission has gained positive response from many operators within the online gambling industry such as Betfair and Betsafe.  The chief legal and regulatory affairs officer of Betfair said that the new law will be beneficial for Denmark’s government, international internet gambling operators and Danish consumers.   Furthermore, Remote Gambling Association’s chief executive explained that it makes sense that there is a difference in taxes between online gambling and land based operations because bricks and mortar establishments compete exclusively inside national boundaries, while online operators must battle within an extremely competitive international market.  Therefore, financial policies should be made in view of these facts.