Betfair and Ladbrokes lose battle against Dutch monopoly 03/06/2010
Suzie Neuwirth
Betfair and Ladbrokes have failed to topple Dutch lottery and betting site De Lotto’s monopoly, following the decision published by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) this morning.
The court’s ruling stated that any online offering other than the incumbent monopoly can be restricted, even if operators are licensed in other EU countries, until egaming laws are harmonised
across the EU.
The judges said: “The mere fact that an operator such as the Ladbrokes companies lawfully offer services in that sector via the internet in another member state is not a sufficient
assurance that national consumers will be protected."
Betfair however declared following the ruling that it will be applying for a licence in the Netherlands “at the first opportunity”, after the court confirmed its long-stated view that
sports betting licences in the EU should be allocated in a transparent and equal manner, allowing Dutch consumers to benefit from competitive bids for the Dutch market.
The decision upholds the
December
opinion of Advocate General Yves Bot, and is the latest round in Ladbrokes’ and Betfair’s long-running battle with the Dutch authorities since 2005, when they ruled the operators
stop taking bets from Dutch citizens, citing concerns with monitoring fraud.
Betfair also said in its statement today that the court’s reiteration of points from previous cases that online betting is more dangerous than traditional offline forms had been “made
without foundation”.
Betfair’s director of European public affairs, Tim Phillips said: “Until we get a clear lead from the Commission, gambling consumers will continue to be told that their preferred
leisure activity is the only one in Europe which doesn’t benefit from an open market. ECJ rulings are not addressing the simple fact that consumer choice between regulated products is
being dictated to in a manner which no other industry has to accept.”
Philips however welcomed the European Commission’s announcement of a Green Paper on online gambling, which he hoped would provide “an opportunity to address these key issues.”
Today’s ruling acts as a guidance for the Dutch courts, which will need to reach a final decision on the case. Their decision is expected towards the end of this year.
The changing regulatory framework in Europe will be one of the hot topics at eGaming Review's free conference and exhibition EGR Live, which will be held on 14 and 15 June in London.
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Posted: 03/06/2010
Nick
There is no single word about consumers rights in the court's decision !!
Some other court rulings partially in favour of ending monopolies made no mention of consumers rights either !
What sort of justice is that and what sort of Democratic EU ????
The monopolies are robbing us every day by lowering the prices of sports events 20% and more.
It's not about who will make a consortium with who, how many meters distance operator A should have from operator B. It's about people who are robbed of their money.
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