Compliance Updates
Lotteritilsynet to Fine SEOButler
Lotteritilsynet, the gambling regulator of Norway, is to fine the SEO service provider SEOButler NOK2000 (€198) per day for promoting illegal gambling websites.
The regulator has previously issued warnings to SEOButler. It first ordered the company to cease promoting unlicensed gambling websites on its platforms in December.
It followed that in March with a warning that it would issue a fine if SEOButler didn’t cease to market the sites.
SEOButler responded by claiming that access to its sites was blocked for Norwegian IP addresses, but in a review carried out last month, the Norwegian regulator found that four sites had dot.no domains and were available to users in the country.
While many SEOButler sites were indeed blocked to Norwegian users, Lotteritilsynet found that Tjenpengeronline.no, Fotballreisetips.no, Finnstilling.no and Startsidendin.no were operational and promoting unlicensed gaming.
Lotteritilsynet said: “SEOButler has on a number of occasions been made aware of breaches of the marketing and dissemination ban.
“Lotteritilsynet takes a serious view of repeated breaches of the regulations, especially after the actor is made aware of which specific cases are considered to be breaches of the rules.
“Furthermore, SEOButler has in several cases given the impression that it has complied with the orders to stop its illegal business.”
It will fine the company to the tune of NOK2000 (€198) per day as of May 25, up to a maximum of NOK200,000 (€19,800).
The Norwegian Lotteries Act 1998-99 states that a fine should be large enough “that it eliminates the benefits the offender may have by continuing the illegal activity” but “should not be unreasonably high”.
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The Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) has announced Chief Tammy Cook-Searson, of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, as its new Board Chair for SIGA’s Board of Directors.
SIGA is a non-profit First Nation gaming operator for seven land-based casinos and the online gaming platform PlayNow.com in Saskatchewan.
Chief Cook-Searson first joined SIGA’s Board of Directors in 2018 and has been a regular SIGA Board member as well as a member of SIGA’s Audit & Finance Committee.
She is serving in her 20th year as Chief of Lac La Ronge Indian Band and has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree and a graduate diploma in management from Athabasca University. She also holds honorary degrees from the University of Regina, the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT) and Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
Chief Cook-Searson replaces outgoing Board Chair former Chief of Muskowekwan First Nation Reginald Bellerose, who has held the Board Chair position since February 4, 2015.
The post The Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) Selects New Board Chair appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has requested the Australian internet service providers (ISPs) to block more illegal online gambling sites, after investigations found these services to be operating in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.
The latest sites blocked include Casiny, CoinPoker, Crown Play, Fafabet9, SlotFred, Smart 93 and Vigor Spin.
Website blocking is one of a range of enforcement options to protect Australians against illegal online gambling. Since the ACMA made its first blocking request in November 2019, 1251 illegal gambling and affiliate websites have been blocked. Around 220 illegal services have also pulled out of the Australian market since the ACMA started enforcing new illegal online gambling rules in 2017.
The post ACMA Blocks More llegal Online Gambling Websites appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Norway’s state-run gambling model could soon face a major change. With the next general election scheduled for September 8, the Progress Party is renewing calls to end the national gambling monopoly.
Speaking at a May conference hosted by the Norwegian Online Gaming Association (Norsk Bransjeforening for Onlinespill), MP Silje Hjemdal reiterated her party’s long-standing position that Norway must move towards a liberalised market. The call echoes the Progress Party’s 2021 election manifesto and gains momentum as similar reforms unfold in neighbouring Finland.
Hjemdal, a member of the Storting’s family and culture committee, highlighted successful remote gambling frameworks in Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. While she stopped short of endorsing a specific model, she expressed admiration for Denmark’s regulatory setup.
“I haven’t landed on a concrete model, but what’s happening in Denmark is very exciting. I’d gladly take a study trip there to learn more,” she said.
She also pointed to the broader risks of maintaining the monopoly, noting that large sums of money continue to flow out of the country through unlicensed platforms.
“We are one of the very few countries left using this model. There’s a clear need for better regulation—under the current system, Norwegian sports and culture lose out as money is spent offshore,” Hjemdal added.
The Progress Party isn’t alone in pushing for change. The Conservative Party also supports opening Norway’s gambling market and included the proposal in its latest manifesto, released in September 2023.
Carl Stenstrøm, Secretary-General of the Norwegian Online Gaming Association, believes the upcoming election could prove decisive. In a previous interview, he described the current level of cross-party support as the strongest yet for ending the monopoly, with liberalisation potentially arriving by 2028.
The post Norway Progress Party Renew Calls to End Gambling Monopoly appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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