Applause and Criticism for Plans to Regulate Poker in Holland
Written by Matt W | Thursday, August 26th, 2010
The Dutch government’s release of an advisory report calling for the legalization and regulation of online poker and gambling has been met with mixed responses. On the one hand, the news has been welcomed by operators who see great potential in entering the Dutch market, although others have criticized it for keeping sports betting, bingo and casino operators out in the cold.
Yesterday, the Dutch Ministry of Justice released the report of an advisory group that was assembled last year, known as Commission Jansen, to investigate how to change the current legislation governing poker and gambling in the Netherlands. The final view of the report was to regulate online gambling and bring the country in line with many other countries in Europe and the rest of the world.
On August 23rd, the final report was published, and – among other things – called for the creation of a licensing system for online poker operators.
The Remote Gambling Association, the pro-gambling group that represents many of the world’s online operators, however, slammed the report and said that it did not bring Holland any closer to a fair and competitive gambling market – certainly not with the fact that many areas in the industry were excluded from participating.
“This is clearly a missed opportunity to follow the same path as other jurisdictions, such as Denmark, which do not seek to discriminate against different forms of gambling and recognize that all are capable of being properly regulated,” said Clive Hawkswood, the Chief Executive of the RGA. “Given that de Lotto offers sport betting, this appears to appease the lottery operator by limiting the opening to poker only.”
Hawkswood said that “it would be churlish of us not to welcome the poker opening, if it is granted in a viable way,” however he believes that the changes in the law are a missed opportunity for other segments.
“If consumer protection rather than market protectionism is the real policy objective then this recommendation should embrace other areas,” he said.
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· Written by Matt W · Filed Under Poker News · Comments Off
