The new Swedish gambling act came into effect, allowing private gambling operators to enter the market in the country. The decision to pass the new law was a long time coming, and it all came down to statistics. It was shown that Sweden’s gambling market generated revenue of almost $ 2,500,000 in 2018; $720,000 came from operators with foreign licenses. August 2019, there were already 83 licensed companies that were operating within Sweden. Since there was only a short time window between the laws’s passing and its implementation, the government didn’t have time to decide on proper regulation methods.
The law was granted to the state congress less than six months before it was going to be enforced. We and a lot of others were trying to ask the authority and the policymakers themselves for clarification, but nothing really came out.
Sweden’s online gambling licensees are choosing to challenge rather than pay financial penalties appoint by the local gambling regulatory body. One of this year’s penalized licensees has so far paid its penalty, with the rest choosing to challenge their penalties in court.
Gen. Camilla Rosenberg, the director of Spelinspektionen indicated disbelief at the operators’ position, saying she was “a little bit surprised that they think so much is unclear.” Rosenberg said Spelinspektionen and the government “do not share the industry’s opinion” on the alleged shortcomings of Sweden’s new gambling rules.
Swedish gambling group Global Gaming today declared that it has removed its Ninjacasino.se domain to Viral Interactive Ltd., a subsidiary of gaming technology provider Finnplay.
Global Gaming announced its partnership with Finnplay and Viral Interactive this past July. Viral Interactive holds a license from the Swedish Gambling Authority to provide online gambling services on the territory of Sweden.
The Ninja Casino brand will be able to finally return to the Swedish gambling market. Following the revocation of its Swedish license, Global Gaming turned to several courts to appeal Spelinspektionen’s decision, asking to be allowed to resume operations while the regulator was reviewing the move.
The new law that was passed in 2018 changed all this as Sweden decided to allow interested operators, foreign and domestic alike, to apply for domestic licenses with the Swedish Gambling Authority. This decision by the Swedish government had a twofold goal: to force out all unlicensed operators from the country and to offer better protection for the players by closely and vigilantly monitoring the conduct of the licensed ones.
It will be a challenge to find a balance between allowing casinos to advertise their services and stopping gamblers from getting overly excited about placing bets. However, with time, things will even out, and Sweden will enjoy the thriving market without concern.
Swedish Gambling Act is very important for the players in several aspects. Primarily, licensed Sweden online casinos have to meet fairly strict criteria to even get a license in the first place. After this, operators need to make sure their conduct always aligns with Swedish laws, ensuring safer and fairer gaming environment.