Lotto Halts Gambling Activities in DE
Could it be possible that the German lottery monopoly is actually obstructing efforts to regulate gambling in the country? This is what the online magazine Business Insider suggests, following the release of a study from a legal firm that questioned the legality of the monopoly. Could this development lead to changes in German gambling laws?
An old debate with new twists?
Nowadays, it's tough to get a clear picture of the legal status of private gambling providers in Germany, especially those offering online services. While it's well known that online casinos that target German players operate in a legal gray area, full liberalization of the German gambling market, like in many other countries, hasn't happened yet.
Typically, ethical or political reasons are given to support the argument against gambling regulation. But now, a new argument could put an end to the long-standing fight by private gambling companies to operate legally in Germany.
A recent Business Insider report presented findings from a law firm called CBH in their "Brief expert opinion on the coherence of the lottery monopoly and the provisions on commercial machine gaming in gaming halls (Sections 24-26 of the German Gaming Ordinance) in the case of the licensing of online casinos and online machine games". The report states:
"The unrestricted opening of the internet for casino and slot machine games poses the greatest possible risk to the continued existence of the event monopoly for lotteries. A riskier intervention is unthinkable."
Is the state afraid of losing control of gambling?
It's not surprising that the news suggests the German lottery monopoly is a hindrance to the regulation of gambling. According to the experts, private gambling offers pose the biggest competitive threat to the state lottery.
Traditionally, the state's online lottery monopoly makes it harder for private gambling companies to advertise their products, mainly because online gambling offers more user benefits and sometimes better chances of winning. These are called "hybrid lotteries".
Hybrid lotteries are online platforms that provide lottery games similar to the traditional "6 out of 49" Lottery. The difference is that players don't bet directly on numbers; they bet on the outcome of a lottery draw, leading to more betting and gaming options and a more varied game.
With this kind of competition, it would make sense that German politicians might be worried about weakening their offering or even driving it out of the market if private gambling companies and hybrid lotteries were allowed to operate legally in Germany. The report notes:
"Illegal betting on lotteries has caused considerable damage to the public welfare-oriented offering of the German Lotto and Totoblock (DLTB) and also to licensed, commercial gaming brokers."
The German lottery monopoly might not be legally sound
If the experts' analysis is accurate, this could mean swift progress towards regulating gambling in Germany. From a legal standpoint, a ban on private gambling offers wouldn't hold up, since the state would be the main beneficiary of this regulation.
The report also offers some potential solutions. However, they might not be entirely satisfying. The only way to ensure a long-term, sustainable solution would be to ban all private gambling services and take complete control of the gaming market itself. That way, the state could address ethical and security concerns.
On the other hand, there's also a demand. The report states that the state has a duty to address this demand by providing an equally diverse range of gambling services, something that private gambling companies can currently offer. If the state fails to do so, opening up the market might be the only solution.
Regardless, the report seems to favor private gambling companies. It remains to be seen whether legal action will follow this release.
Source
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Source: www.onlinecasinosdeutschland.com
