Online Casinos in Europe to Face New Laws
Online gambling and betting across the European continent has been a thriving industry for almost two decades. The global industry has grown tremendously as a result of the European developers having significantly contributed to the improvement of games, graphics, safety and overall innovation of the industry. However, new laws could see online casinos in Europe being faced with a tougher time ahead.
Michael Barnier, the head of the European Commission, has once again sent out a stern warning to European gambling regulators. Barnier’s commission is charged with enforcing European Union laws, and gambling regulators could be faced with time in court if they fail to comply with the rules that have been set out for them with regard to the conduct of casinos – including online casinos – in Europe.
These warnings hold a lot of weight as Barnier has even been before the European parliament with these warnings. The latest statements surrounding his warning to European online casino operators took place on The Rock. He strongly stated that come autumn his commission would put forward stringent new plans to properly oversee the online betting and gambling industry all across Europe.
However, this should not come as a surprise for online casino operators. Aside from the repeated warnings dished out by Barnier and other members of his commission, members of the online casino community have been included in the discussions surrounding laws and regulations. The latest invitation to participate in the discussions attracted 250 stakeholders, which according to Barnier, was a huge success.
World’s Richest Casino Exec Opposes Online Betting
The world’s richest casino executive and chief of the Gambling Industry’s largest publicly traded company has decided to come out publicly against online gambling.
Sheldon Adelson, the chairman of the billion dollar casino chain, the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, has revealed that he is totally opposed to online gambling due to the fact that he believes that available technology is not yet secure enough to stop young people from wagering on the Internet.
Sheldon met with Republican leaders last week in an attempt to convince them not to support the introduction of a legalized and regulated online gambling industry in the United States.
A spokesperson for Adelson, Ron Reese, reported that the 16th richest man in the world’s viewpoint did not reflect the opinion of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation but is his own observation of concerns about technology.
Chief Executive Officer of the American Gaming Association, Frank Fahrenkopf, revealed that he had met with Adelson recently and was told by him that he would oppose any legislation to legalize online poker in the United States. Fahrenkopf added that Sheldon was perfectly within his right to make such a decision as he has had concerns about this issue for a long time.
The American Gaming Association, at the discretion of their board of directors, will carry on supporting federal legislation for states to be allowed to license and regulate online poker.
According to Fahrenkopf, the association would like federal legislation that permits states to make the decision whether or not to offer poker to its residents and prevents children from gambling online.
