You are in:
National regulations likely to control online gaming
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution on online gambling that points the way to continued exclusion of the sector from the application of EU Internal Market principles.
Ron Goudsmit, Chairman of the European Casino Association, welcomed the resolution, saying that it: "acknowledges that Member States are best placed to ensure consumer protection and fraud prevention through the regulation and control of their individual gambling markets."
The resolution, which was passed with 544 Members of the European Parliament in favour, 36 against and 66 abstentions, supports the rights of EU member states to regulate and control their gambling markets in accordance with their traditions and cultures. It also underlines that online gambling operators must comply with the gambling legislation of the Member State in which they provide their services and in which the gaming consumer resides.
The resolution calls on the Commission to carry out research into the risks of online gambling, to take appropriate measures to combat illegal online gambling services and aggressive gambling advertising, and to come forward with proposals for an EU approach to regulating online gambling.
A Europe-wide gambling policy could support national regulations, and mean that players are taxed under the laws of the country they live in rather than the country the operator is based in.
