As the European Commission weighs up the odds for taking state gambling monopolies to court, British bookmakers are singling out the Italian Government in the launch of legal action. The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) is to contest legislation that was enacted in Italy on 1February, whereby only government approved gambling sites are available for access. The RGA, the trade body for the UK online gaming operators, will claim that the Italian law making it a criminal offence for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to allow access to unauthorised sites breaches treaty rights under the European Union.

Operators such as Ladbrokes, William Hill and Betfair are licensed in Europe but are now banned from operating in Italy. The RGA claims that Italy is in breach of European Commission rules, as it should have notified the EC of its action. The claim against Italy for its stance in ‘blatantly’ protecting its own industry is expected to be for millions of pounds. Other countries, such as Germany, Sweden, The Netherlands, Hungary and Finland also restrict the advertising and promotion of online gambling. The RGA is to register a complaint this week with the Enterprise and Industry Commission, as the countries in question all promote state gambling sites.

Recently the European Parliament prevented efforts by the European Commission to get gambling into the new Services Directive. The European MPs voted to get gambling excluded, toeing their countries’ line in favour of maintaining the status quo for state monopolies. It was a lost opportunity to get gambling regulation defined clearly and effectively set down for the European Community as a whole. The 2006 European Casino Affiliate Convention in Amsterdam on 9 -11 April will be discussing Italy’s decision to block over 600 online casino websites and the potential for other countries to follow suit. (E-03.20.06)

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