April 13th, 2010
Several articles examining recent developments in the online skill and casino games space. The first looks at developments in Italy:
“…the Italian Gaming Authority has issued the decree regulating online poker cash games and casino games.
Following the successful performance of the required technical authorisation process, Italian licensed operators will be able shortly to offer these new games, which are expected to represent the greatest development in the European gaming market in 2010.
Indeed, such change follows the launch of online skill games (that allowed only tournament based poker games) in 2008 that led Italy to become the greatest online gaming market in Europe, and – according to a market analysis – the launch of poker cash and casino games alone will generate a turnover of respectively €5bn and €3bn in 2010.
This development is likely to encourage more and more operators to enter into the Italian gaming market and such decision will be eased also by the circumstance that the decree regulating the new Italian online gaming licenses – expected to be issued during the next months – will allow operators to locate their legal seat and equipment in any country of the European Economic Area, or in any other country (e.g. Isle of Man, Alderney etc.) that will enter into bilateral agreements with the Italian Gaming Authority.
This means that licensed operators will only be obliged to pay Italian gaming taxes, while they will pay the corporate taxes of the country where they are established.
Given the expected size of the poker cash games and casino games market in Italy, current Italian licensed operators are working non-stop to be among the first ones launching such games and new entrants are reviewing the best strategies to be active in the market under an Italian gaming license in the shortest possible term. Indeed, the increase in the turnover of the Italian gaming market is likely to be accompanied by the implementation of more stringent measures by the Italian Gaming Authority to block the offer of games by operators non-holding an Italian gaming license.”
The second looks at new legislation in France legalizing online gambling:
“…FRANCE’S National Assembly has voted in favour of a bill to legalise online gambling, all but officially opening up the French market to international operators.
The bill, which passed a first reading by the Senate in February, remains only to be approved by the European Union and France’s Conseil d’Etat (Supreme Court) and Conseil Constitutionnel (Constitutional Council), meaning that French citizens are likely to be able to place online sports bets ahead of the football World Cup this summer.
In a statement budget minister François Baroin said he was “convinced this solution will allow us to gradually drain the black-market of online gaming by creating a legal alternativeâ€.
Monopolies La Francaise Des Jeux (FDJ) and Pari-Mutuel Urbain (PMU) have both taken significant measures to enhance both their brands and their product offerings.
FDJ, the French national lottery operator and the second largest lottery operator in the world, acquired LVS last month, the betting software supplier that in January won the contract to deliver fixed-odds sports betting online for FDJ once the French online sports betting market opens.
PMU, the largest horse racing monopoly in Europe, signed a deal for PartyGaming to provide it with an online poker product last month, its second tie with a high-profile egaming operator after November’s agreement for Paddy Power to provide it with fixed-odds risk management and pricing tools.”
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