News

The debate will take place amid the launch of a new book containing interviews with figures involved in the push for gaming legislation.

Brazil.- The Chamber of Deputies Tourism Commission has announced that tomorrow (Wednesday June 29), it will hold an open debate on the legalisation of gambling. The debate was requested by deputy Newton Cardoso (MDB-MG) to mark the launch of a new book.

Brazil’s proposed gaming legislation, Bill 442/91, has been approved by the chamber at the end of February and is pending consideration by the Federal Senate. That may not happen until next year.

Cardoso said: “The debate on the subject is timely and of national interest, since the legalization of games of chance is shown as a promising path for the recovery of the economy, above all, generating jobs and foreign currency for the country.”

Luiz Carlos Prestes, one of the main advocates of gambling legalisation in Brazil, is publishing the title, “Brazil, Você Tá Duro Porque Quer”. The book brings together a collection of interviews that he conducted in 2021 with various personalities linked to the gaming sector in the country.

“The book has 31 interviews with politicians, businessmen, lawyers and artists about gambling as a recreational activity and business capable of generating hundreds of thousands of formal jobs and billions of reais in taxes,” Cardoso explained.

According to what was communicated, participants in the debate will include Leônidas Oliveira, Minas Gerais secretary of state for culture and tourism, the author Luiz Carlos Prestes Filho and the lawyer Luiz Felipe Maia.

Highlights of the Gambling Regulatory Framework
Brazil’s proposed gambling legislation would allow permanent or temporary licenses for the exploitation of games of chance, including bingo halls, casinos, animal games and resorts with integrated casinos, as well as tourist operations.

If the project is approved as it is, each state will be able to have one casino, with the exception of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, Amazonas and Pará, which may have two, and São Paulo, with three, due to their sizes.

The project would also allow river casinos, with one per river with an extension between 1,500km and 2,500km; two on a river between 2,500km and 3,500km and three, maximum, when the river extends for more than 3,500km. The maximum would be 10. Such vessels would not be allowed to anchor in the same place for more than 30 consecutive days.

The British regulator is doing away with its use of dedicated account managers.

UK.- The British Gambling Commission has announced changes in its licensing processes, doing away with the current dedicated account manager model. The changes mean that operators will no longer have specific individual contact when they apply for a licence.

The licensing department will be divided into four sub-groups, each responsible for different types of work. The regulator said it was making the changes to its working practices in order to make the best use of its resources. It said it hoped the changes will allow it to process applications more quickly. It also hopes to be able to resolve queries more efficiently and effectively.

New Gambling Commission licensing groups
The four new licensing sub-groups will each be responsible for different areas of work. The groups are as follows:

The Operating Licence New Group – responsible for processing applications for new operator licences;
The Change of Corporate Control Group – responsible for processing applications relating to changes of ownership and control for existing operators;
The Operating Licence Vary Group – responsible for processing applications relating to changes to existing operator licences, and
The Personal Licence group – responsible for processing all applications relating to personal licences.
The way in which applications themselves should be submitted to the regulator has not changed. Where an online service exists, applications must be made online. For applications where an online service does not exist, these must be made by email. Applications can no longer be submitted by post.

Once an application has been allocated to a caseworker, operators will receive their contact details and an estimated timescale for determination. The caseworker will advise the operator if the timescale changes.

The overhaul of the way licences are processed comes as the Gambling Commission continues to await the result of the British government’s review of gambling legislation. The Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport continues to insist that its gambling white paper will be published “soon”. The review has lasted more than 18 months.

The government was widely expected to propose maximum stake limits for online casino gaming, a ban on gambling sponsorship in sports and a mandatory levy on gambling operators. However, it has been reported that those two later proposals have been dropped. Other changes expected include a requirement for operators to share data to a single customer view and new measures on affordability.

Meanwhile, the Gambling Commission has published guidance on its new consumer protection requirements due to come into force on September 12. The guidance aims to ensure that online gaming operators are clear on what they need to do to meet the new requirements, which were announced in April.

Operators will now have to bring in automated processes to record indicators of gambling harm and will need to be able to provide evidence of their evaluations and customer interactions to the regulator as part of routine casework. They must prevent marketing to at-risk players and must “take action in a timely manner”, elevating interactions and engaging with customers

A working group will inspect bookmakers’ contracts as part of its review of advertising standards.

France.- The French gambling regulator l’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has announced that a new working group will inspect betting operators’ media contracts as part of its review of advertising standards.

The “working group of experts” will inspect bookmakers’ planned marketing campaigns with the aim of preventing excessive advertising and protecting minors and vulnerable audiences. It will also provide best practice guidelines for operators and media owners.

The move forms part of the ANJ’s focus on advertising after it warned operators about an “oversaturation” of marketing during the UEFA Euro 2020 Championships. Operators were instructed to submit six-month reports detailing their planned marketing campaigns for ANJ approval.

The working group now has the task of supervising media partnerships and sponsorship contracts ahead of several major events like FIFA 2022 World Cup, the RFU Rugby World Cup, which will be held in France next year, and then the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

ANJ said: “The main objective of the working group is to put in place clear rules for partnership and sponsorship contracts with gambling operators before the start of the FIFA World Cup in November.”

The ANJ has said that it “must see a vast improvement in advertising during World Cup 2022”, suggesting that the results could influence the stance it takes on advertising in the future.

ANJ approves Winamax marketing strategy
Meanwhile, the ANJ has approved Winamax’s marketing strategy for 2022 after having rejected the gambling operator’s previous applications. Winamax first submitted its strategy in January, and then again in March, on which occasion, the ANJ asked it to withdraw the application due to an ad that showed gambling improving life for a man and his mother. It was the only operator to have a campaign rejected.

The ANJ said the campaign showed irresponsible gambling behaviour. Winamax submitted a new strategy in April, dropping the original “Tout pour la Daronne”(“everything for mum”) slogan. It has also reduced its budget for the ad.

The two-year moratorium on casino licences in Iowa will block P2E’s Cedar Rapids casino project in Linn County.

US.- Iowa governor Kim Reynolds has signed into law a measure that places a two-year moratorium on new casino licences. The moratorium was passed by the Iowa Legislature last month. The move will block P2E’s Cedar Rapids casino project in Linn County.

The moratorium is part of House File 2497, a broader law on gaming and regulations. The bill was passed 35-11 in the Iowa Senate and later 60-23 in the Iowa House.

Cedar Rapids mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said that Reynolds was aware that her signing the bill was “a disappointing decision for me as mayor and for the city.”

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette, she said: “I expressed to her my disappointment and reassured her that Cedar Rapids would still be here when the moratorium is lifted in two years.”

Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, who chairs the House State Government Committee, said the objective was to preserve an “equilibrium” in the number of casinos. Kaufmann said he was concerned that with 19 state-licensed casinos, and 23 casinos in total, Iowa’s gambling market was saturated, which could impact on casinos’ donations to local nonprofits.

The Iowa Gaming Association’s president, Wes Ehrecke, said the group supports the moratorium. However, Linn County Gaming Association president Anne Parmley said the moratorium was “clearly targeting” the county.

The Cedar Rapids casino project
In March, the Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission opened the licence application process for a new casino in Cedar Rapids, Linn County, after around 55 per cent of voters in Linn County, Iowa, said yes to a casino last November.

Attempts to bring a casino to Cedar Rapids failed in 2014 and 2017. On both occasions, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission said a casino would take funds from other casinos.

The ASA has warned operators that the “vast majority” of content marketing for gambling is subject to the CAP code

UK.- The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has warned gambling operators to ensure that content marketing on social media meets advertising rules. It said it had received questions about whether content marketing counts as marketing for the purposes of the CAP code. Its conclusion is that the “vast majority” does.

In its update, the ASA said questions had been raised over the extent to which the ASA’s remit covers gambling provider communications in social media content marketing: a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.

The ASA responded that it has a common understanding with the Gambling Commission that all social media content published by licensed gambling operators must comply with the standards and protections set out in the Committee for Advertising Practice’s UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (known as the CAP Code).

In April the Committee for Advertising Practice announced the introduction of tough new rules for gambling ads that it says aim to safeguard young people and vulnerable audiences. The rules significantly impact gambling advertisers looking to promote their brands using prominent sports people and celebrities or social media influencers who appeal to under-18s.

The new rules state that gambling and lottery ads must not “be likely to be of strong appeal to children or young persons, especially by reflecting or being associated with youth culture”.

The ASA view on gambling content marketing
The ASA said: “Social media includes a diverse range of content as marketers attempt to inform, entertain and, ultimately, promote their products and wider brand identity. Sports betting operators are arguably at the forefront of this with popular social media accounts on platforms like Twitter that attempt to drive significant engagement with their followers.

“The ASA regulates commercial communications in marketers’ own spaces online that are likely to have the effect of ‘selling something’; content that can reasonably be considered “advertising”.

For obvious reasons, it can’t regulate everything in the online space. One of the key exclusions – inspired in large part by the need to protect freedom of expression – is for editorial content.

“Gambling social media accounts sometimes include editorial-style content, like commentary or opinions on recent events, or more abstract humour, such as ‘memes’ and other irreverent takes on current sporting news. This has been described by researchers as ‘content marketing’ where there are no direct product references, calls to action or links to operator websites.

“The vast majority of ‘content marketing’ is effectively deemed by the ASA to “sell something” and is, therefore, regulated under the CAP Code.”

Exceptions to the CAP Code
However, the ASA recognised that there may be some exceptions and that some social media content may fall outside the ASA’s enforcement remit on the basis that it is considered not to be directly connected with the supply of the gambling product. This is likely to be where there are no direct, or significant indirect references, to gambling products.

It said that to “ensure nothing falls between the gaps”, the ASA and the Gambling Commission had agreed the following:

The ASA will continue to consider complaints about social media ads brought to its attention on a case-by-case basis in line with its existing approach to remit decisions.
In the limited scenarios where complaints about operators’ social media are deemed not to be within remit, the ASA will refer them to the Gambling Commission.
The Gambling Commission will consider provisions under its Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP), which sets out the rules for operators licensed to transact with consumers in Great Britain, and will consider taking action in line with its Statement of Licensing, Compliance and Enforcement policy.

The igaming hub of Malta has finally been removed from the FATF’s list of untrustworthy countries

Malta.- The G7’s anti-money laundering (AML) watchdog the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has removed Malta from its “greylist” of untrustworthy jurisdictions. The decision was taken at the FATF’s latest meeting in Berlin this week.

It comes three months after the FATF visited Malta to inspect reforms, including the country’s implementation of an AML action plan. The body had requested clarification on information collection and sharing with international financial authorities and measures on tax evasion.

It had recognised that Malta had made significant reforms through its action plan after it was grey-listed last year and had increased its use of the Financial Intelligence Unit’s (FIU) services to pursue money laundering and criminal tax cases. However, the body said that an on-site review was needed to ensure the AML measures were being implemented before Malta could be removed from the grey list.

Malta was placed on the FATF’s greylist a year ago following complaints from EU member states about its lack of regulatory oversight, tax avoidance and the processing of financial transactions. That saw it join a list of 19 other countries including Myanmar, Syria and Zimbabwe.

Maltese opposition leader Bernard Grech branded the decision a “national punishment”, warning that it could seriously harm Malta’s growing finance and gaming sectors. Malta’s prime minister Robert Abela said the FATF’s decision was “unjust”.

The measures implemented in Malta
However, Abela went on to order an overhaul of Malta’s Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) and the creation of a new company register in order to show transparency of ownership and assets.

The FIAU has since ordered Malta-domiciled businesses to follow its revised AML regulations that include new procedures for customer due diligence, reporting, outsourcing, staff training and vetting, record keeping and interactions with “non-reputable jurisdictions”. Maltese businesses were also ordered to disclose beneficial ownership in corporate structures.

In the meantime, a number of legal cases have begun involving former members of the Malta Gaming Authority. Last month, former compliance officer Iosif Galea was arrested on a European Arrest Warrant while on holiday in Italy. He was reportedly travelling in a group with former Maltese Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat.

The European Arrest Warrant had been issued at the request of German authorities, who wanted Galea to answer for alleged tax evasion. However, Galea also faces legal issues in Malta itself, where he was on bail for his alleged involvement in the leak of confidential information from the MGA.

Meanwhile, former MGA chief technology officer Jason Farrugia has been charged in court with several offences, including fraud exceeding €5,000, money laundering, extortion, acceptance of bribes, misappropriation, trading in influence, disclosing confidential information and computer misuse. His wife, Christine, 26, was charged with money laundering. Both have pleaded not guilty.

He is the second senior MGA official to be charged in court after former CEO Heathcliff Farrugia was charged with trading in influence due to communications with Yorgen Fenech.

The ASA has warned operators that the “vast majority” of content marketing for gambling is subject to the CAP code

UK.- The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has warned gambling operators to ensure that content marketing on social media meets advertising rules. It said it had received questions about whether content marketing counts as marketing for the purposes of the CAP code. Its conclusion is that the “vast majority” does.

In its update, the ASA said questions had been raised over the extent to which the ASA’s remit covers gambling provider communications in social media content marketing: a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.

The ASA responded that it has a common understanding with the Gambling Commission that all social media content published by licensed gambling operators must comply with the standards and protections set out in the Committee for Advertising Practice’s UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (known as the CAP Code).

In April the Committee for Advertising Practice announced the introduction of tough new rules for gambling ads that it says aim to safeguard young people and vulnerable audiences. The rules significantly impact gambling advertisers looking to promote their brands using prominent sports people and celebrities or social media influencers who appeal to under-18s.

The new rules state that gambling and lottery ads must not “be likely to be of strong appeal to children or young persons, especially by reflecting or being associated with youth culture”.

The ASA view on gambling content marketing
The ASA said: “Social media includes a diverse range of content as marketers attempt to inform, entertain and, ultimately, promote their products and wider brand identity. Sports betting operators are arguably at the forefront of this with popular social media accounts on platforms like Twitter that attempt to drive significant engagement with their followers.

“The ASA regulates commercial communications in marketers’ own spaces online that are likely to have the effect of ‘selling something’; content that can reasonably be considered “advertising”.

For obvious reasons, it can’t regulate everything in the online space. One of the key exclusions – inspired in large part by the need to protect freedom of expression – is for editorial content.

“Gambling social media accounts sometimes include editorial-style content, like commentary or opinions on recent events, or more abstract humour, such as ‘memes’ and other irreverent takes on current sporting news. This has been described by researchers as ‘content marketing’ where there are no direct product references, calls to action or links to operator websites.

“The vast majority of ‘content marketing’ is effectively deemed by the ASA to “sell something” and is, therefore, regulated under the CAP Code.”

Exceptions to the CAP Code
However, the ASA recognised that there may be some exceptions and that some social media content may fall outside the ASA’s enforcement remit on the basis that it is considered not to be directly connected with the supply of the gambling product. This is likely to be where there are no direct, or significant indirect references, to gambling products.

It said that to “ensure nothing falls between the gaps”, the ASA and the Gambling Commission had agreed the following:

The ASA will continue to consider complaints about social media ads brought to its attention on a case-by-case basis in line with its existing approach to remit decisions.
In the limited scenarios where complaints about operators’ social media are deemed not to be within remit, the ASA will refer them to the Gambling Commission.
The Gambling Commission will consider provisions under its Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP), which sets out the rules for operators licensed to transact with consumers in Great Britain, and will consider taking action in line with its Statement of Licensing, Compliance and Enforcement policy.

The Gambling Supervisory Authority has closed a loophole that prevented it from confiscating the proceeds of illegal acts from companies.

Lithuania.- The Gambling Supervisory Authority has taken steps to close a loophole in Lithuania’s Code of Administrative Offences (ANK) that prevented it from confiscating the proceeds of illegal acts or the tools used to commit them.

The regulator had realised that while article 34, paragraphs 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the code allow tools used in an administrative offence and the proceeds of said offence to be confiscated, the measure applied only to individuals not to companies. It said that as a result, the regulator would not have been able to confiscate any proceeds of illegal gambling from companies – only from individuals.

It submitted an amendment to article 134 in 2021 in a bid to close the loophole and its proposal has now been approved and has entered into law.

Fines for breaches of gambling promotion ban
Meanwhile, the regulator has been very active in enforcement action against operators for breaches of Lithuania’s ban on promoting gambling. It has issued several €25,000 fines to operators in recent months.

The latest operators who have fallen foul of the rules were Olympic Casino Group Baltija, Tete-a-Tete Casino and UAB Baltic Bet. Previous fines were issued against Unigames and Betsson’s Betsafe as well as Amber Gaming and Top Sport.

Despite the new restrictions on promotion, Lithuanian gambling revenue continues to grow, rising by 90 per cent year-on-year to €43.4m in the first quarter of 2022. Part of the rise can be explained by the return of land-based gaming after Covid-19 lockdowns, but online gaming revenue also rose, up 16.7 per cent year-on-year to €26.8m.

A joint conference committee will meet to work on a bill that both chambers can approve.

US.- A joint committee will meet today to try to find a sports betting bill that both Massachusetts chambers can agree on. The Massachusetts Senate and the Massachusetts House of Representatives have each passed different sports betting bills.

The joint committee will try to find an agreement that both houses can approve before the legislative session expires on July 31. Representatives Jerald Parisella, Aaron Michlewitz and David Muradian and senators Michael Rodrigues, Eric Lesser and Patrick O’Connor are due to meet virtually at today (June 9) at 2pm to start negotiations.

One of the main differences is that bill passed by the Senate has a prohibition on wagers on collegiate athletes. The Senate bill would also forbid “advertising, marketing and branding through certain identified promotional items that, as determined by the commission, tend to increase the likelihood of problem gambling, which may include giveaways, coupons or promotional gaming credits”.

It would also ban marketing during a live sporting event and would only allow online marketing if 85 per cent of the audience “is reasonably expected to be 21 years of age or older”.

Another major difference is the tax rate. The House bill proposed a 15 per cent tax on mobile wagering and a 12.5 per cent tax on retail wagering activities. The Senate’s proposing a 20 per cent tax on retail betting and 35 per cent on mobile betting.

Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker has already indicated willingness to sign a bill if the two houses manage to reach an agreement. He has long supported sports gaming legalisation. According to some estimates, legal sports betting could bring an additional $35m in revenue to Massachusetts.

The operator’s revenue has suffered since it began blocking Dutch players in October.

The Netherlands.- When the newly regulated Dutch online gaming market launched at the start of October, several major players began to block Dutch players from their sites to conform with the new regulations. One of those operators has now secured a Dutch licence.

Kindred Group has been blocking Dutch players while it took steps to secure its own Dutch licence, a process that required it to wait for a cooling-off period to pass. It’s now obtained a licence from the Dutch gambling regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) to offer online gambling and betting.

Kindred said it will launch its Unibet brand in the Netherlands in the next few days.

Chief executive Henrik Tjärnström said: “The Netherlands is a large and important European market and one that we look forward to operating in with a local licence.

“We have been advocating local licence schemes for the past decade, and are thrilled that our newly awarded licence in the Netherlands will allow us to deepen and develop our involvement in the Dutch society, as well as actively contribute to a fair and sustainable gambling market.

“As part of our long-term ambitions and strategy, we are eager to provide a safe, secure and entertaining gambling experience for Dutch customers.”

Kindred has seen a signficant impact on revenue since it began blocking Dutch players. Revenue for the first quarter was down 31 per cent year-on-year.

Gross winnings revenue (B2C) was down 31 per cent to £242.4m, largely because of the block on customers in the Netherlands. Outside of the Netherlands, gross winnings were down 7 per cent (or 3 per cent in constant currency).

Meanwhile, the New York hedge fund Corvex Management is pushing Kindred Group‘s board to investigate selling the company after it reported that it now owns 10 per cent of the group’s shares and voting rights. The activist investor, which is run by Keith Arlyn Meister, made a statement disclosing its stake to comply with Swedish regulations.