- Discussion became bogged down in debate around advertising, unlicensed operators and DNS/IP blocking.
- As it stands, online gambling companies operate in a quasi-legal state; they still offer their services in the Netherlands but toe-the-line in regards to the regulator’s “priority criteria.”
- Questions were raised about how existing companies currently operating without a license in the country will be treated.
After years of procedural debate and delays, the Dutch Senate is finally considering the Remote Gambling Act (RGA) that will modernize and regulate online poker and casino games.
Liberalizing the online gambling market appears to have broad support among the various coalitions of the government. However, in debates in the Senate this week, more clarity on various aspects of the bill was requested, raising questions over how existing companies currently operating without a license in the country will be treated.
“It appeared that there is still a lot of discussion and uncertainty with respect to several aspects of the RGA,” stated Richard van Schaik, a lawyer for gambling law firm DLA Piper, reporting from Amsterdam on the Senate debates from Wednesday which stretched on late into the evening.
“A majority of the Senate requested more clarity from the Minister of Legal Protection with respect to several questions that were not answered satisfactorily by the Minister,” stated van Schaik. The Minister in question, Sander Dekker, who has championed the bill and is credited with resurrecting the issue last summer, will endeavor to respond to the points raised by the end of this week.
The Senate is then set to reconvene next week and ultimately vote on the bill.
