Gaming operator, 1xBet, was hit with a €400,000 penalty by Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit for unauthorized targeting of consumers in the Netherlands.
Regulator's reports state that two websites – 1xBet.com and xbet-1.com – were accessible from this country, although neither of them hold licenses for operating there.
1XBet.com is run by 1xCorp N.V. and xbet-1.com is under Exinvest Limited jurisdiction. Both companies are subsidiaries of 1xBet.
Moreover, both websites had Dutch language as an option as well as a payment method that is very Dutch-specific (it's only available to those with a Dutch bank account) and quite popular among residents of the country.
Making matters even worse, the investigation suggests that this is only the tip of the iceberg: the two companies are supposedly behind 83 other gambling sites that are also targeting the Dutch market, in which online gambling is not even legal– although that is about to change!
The regulator's team behind the investigation determined that these websites were accessible using the same login details for accessing 1xBet.com and xbet-1.com.
Kannspelautoriteit Chairman, Rene Jansen, commented:
“Online gambling in the Netherlands is illegal; under the current legal regime for companies it is not possible to get a licence for offering online games of chance. Consumers are not assured of a safe game on an honest market with illegal providers.”
William Hill was penalized with €300,000 for similar reasons of targeting without permission in December...
...as was Mr Green's operator, MRG. Their failures in blocking Dutch players cost them €312,500.
This month proved to be historic for gambling in The Netherlands, after the Dutch Senate announced a round of in-depth debate on the Dutch Remote Gaming Bill, during which questions such as licensing of foreign operators were brought up.
The ensuing discussions yielded very tangible results, in that the Remote Gaming Bill was met with approval, meaning that Dutch regulator will be, for the first time ever, handing out online gaming licenses to foreign operators. This is expected to start in mid-2020.
What is particularly interesting about this is that the lower house of Dutch parliament gave the green light to this bill THREE years ago...
...but was waiting for the Senate's long overdue final say on it. Should everything go as scheduled in terms of licensing, the regulated online gambling market in the Netherlands should go live on January 1, 2021.
Source:
“1xBet hit with 400k Dutch fine over unlicensed activities”, igamingbusiness.com, February 26, 2019.