The Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) in Malta is a public single regulatory body that is responsible for the governance of all forms of gaming in the country. Some time ago Malta decided to offer licences to online gambling operators, once they had passed stringent probity checks, and remote gaming is now the fastest growing sector with four classes of licence available.

Class 1- Operators who partake in the gaming risk based on games based on repetitive events (Random Number Generators); Class 2- Operators who partake in gaming risk on markets based on singular events (betting); Class 3- Operators who promote games and in return get a commission. Normally this includes multiplayer games and betting exchanges; Class 4- Operators who run a software platform to host the service of any of the above classes. Such operators are not involved in player management functions.

In March 2005 the Malta Remote Gaming Council (MRGC) was launched following the Remote Gaming Regulations 2004 law. The LGA has now undertaken an agreement with the independent standards organization eCOGRA whereby operators using eCOGRA certified software will not be required to undergo further review before receiving a Malta online gaming licence. This cooperation between the two bodies will not affect the LGA due diligence investigations on all applicants.

Next month the LGA will be participating in the Global Interactive Gaming Summit and Expo (GIGSE) in Montreal, Canada, located together with other local service providers in the Malta Pavilion. Malta has become a hub for European i-gaming but recently over 80 sites licensed in Malta were blocked by Italy. The LGA site was also briefly blocked, although that decision was quickly reversed. The MRGC has urged its members to lodge a formal complaint against Italy for contravening EU law. (E-04.12.06)

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