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ONLINE GAMBLING

ONLINE GAMBLING. BALANCING FREE TRADE & SOCIAL POLICY. What is Online Gambling & Who is ‘at it’?. Gaming, Betting, Lotteries, Prize Competitions The concept of remote gambling Statistics. EXAMPLES. Example Betting Example Horse-racing Example Online poker

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ONLINE GAMBLING

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  1. ONLINE GAMBLING BALANCING FREE TRADE & SOCIAL POLICY

  2. What is Online Gambling & Who is ‘at it’? • Gaming, Betting, Lotteries, Prize Competitions • The concept of remote gambling • Statistics

  3. EXAMPLES • Example Betting • Example Horse-racing • Example Online poker • Example Virtual horse-racing • Example Virtual race horse breeding

  4. Risks associated with Online Gambling &Regulatory Objectives • Problem gambling & addiction • Harm for individual and society • Minors • Crime associated with (some) gambling operations (fraud, money laundering) • Consumer Protection • Ensuring gambling is conducted fairly and openly

  5. Different Regulatory Models • Outright prohibition of online Gambling • Workable? • US Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act 2006 • State operator monopoly • Eg Svenska Spel or Norsk Tipping (games); Norsk Rikstoto (horse race betting) • Single private operator • Eg Pari Mutuel Urbain in France • Restricted licensing system • Open licensing system • Eg UK Gambling Act 2005

  6. National Regulation as Trade Restriction • Divergent laws, no harmonisation, no country of origin rule • Excluded from scope of Services Directive, E-commerce Directive etc • The internet & cross-border access • EU Treaty, Arts 43 and 49 (freedom to provide services & establishment) • Direct effect => lever for harmonisation?? • Role of the courts in the absence of harmonisation?

  7. The Caselaw of the ECJ (1) • Case C-275/92 Schindler • Case C-124/97 Lärää • Case C-67/98Zenatti -------------------------------------------------- • Case C-234/01 Gambelli • Case C-338/04 Placanica (6. March 2007) • Case E-1/06 Re Amendment to Game & Lottery Law (14. March 2007) • Case E-3/06 Ladbrokes v Norway (30. May 2007)

  8. The Caselaw of the ECJ (2) • Jurisprudence under Art 234 (Prelim Ref) • Commission infringement procedure Art 226 • Notification against Denmark, Germany, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden and Hungary (April 2006) • Austria and Luxembourg (December 2006) • Commission expressing concerns on the German Inter-State Treaty in March 2007 • Internet prohibition for sports bets and lotteries

  9. What do the national courts do with this Guidance from the ECJ? • The PMU v Zeturf case as an example • Situation following Gambelli & Placanica: • PMUv Zeturf : Court of Appeal, Paris: (1) ordering cessation of operations; (2) quantifying the penalty amount due by Zeturf • Maltese courts refuse enforcement • French Cour de Cassation: Reversed to CA (13. July 2007)

  10. GATS-WTO • DS 285 Antigua & Barbuda v United States • Cross-border online gambling services • Panel Report November 2004 • Appellate Body Report April 2005 • US not complied: February 2007

  11. Conclusion • Online gambling growth sector => pressure to liberalise cross-border provision • Potential for social & individual harm => risk assessment specific to online gambling • Enforcement issues pertaining to national regulation (arrests; payment providers) • Harmonisation unlikely • Role of the ECJ/WTO in determining the limits of social policy • Proportionality test • But application by the national courts? • Result: Litigation battle

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