Online Gambling in Denmark and Ireland

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Despite the European Commission’s attempts to create a common playing field for online gambling across the continent, the different countries are moving in their own directions. Recently there has been news of developments in online gambling from Denmark and Ireland.

Denmark is the latest country to bow down to the pressure exerted by the European Commission to open up the online gambling market. However, like France and Finland, Denmark is seeking to protect and promote its state gambling monopoly in the regulated market. In Denmark gambling is conducted through the state owned Danske Spil.

From July 1, 2010, private online gambling operators can enter the Internet gambling market making it more competitive. However these operators will require a license in order to offer their services. The way the Danish government has organized the setup will ensure that these licenses are issued to private foreign operators only after January 1, 2011. This will give Danske Spil six months of unhindered and exclusive access to online players and an opportunity to win their loyalty.

The Danish magazine “Ace” has reported that the government has warned gaming operators who try to lure Danish players before they are issued licenses. The magazine has quoted government spokesmen as saying that they will not hesitate to take ISP blocking action in order to prevent Danish players from wagering at unlicensed sites. It is also rumoured that the government will make it extremely difficult for Danish players to withdraw funds from unlicensed sites after July 1. Therefore message boards are carrying warnings to players to keep minimum funds in their accounts.

In Ireland the stage is being readied to tax online gambling. The Sunday Independent carried a report on this issue. It stated that Prime Minister Brian Cowen will be introducing legislation to tax online gambling. The tax will be levied on online and telephone sports betting to start with. The proposed rate of tax is 1%. Whereas most authorities are contemplating such a tax in order to bolster the state economy, it is rumored that the objective of the Irish tax is to subsidize the racing industry. In fact some have claimed that the tax money will ultimately go to the already wealthy horse owners.

Ireland is already suffering from an economic recession and the attendant job losses. Online gambling operators who have created jobs in Ireland claim that this move will result in jobs being lost because of the adverse impact on their functioning. Paddy Power the leading Irish online gambling operator had planned to create 350 new jobs in Ireland and will have to drop the idea if the proposed tax becomes a reality.

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