The Belgian High Court has validated the cancellation of the nation’s 1999 gaming legislation, a judgment that affirms that providers cannot offer diverse types of games on the same online platform.
This legislation has been supplanted by a similar law in 2019, signifying that there are minimal alterations, except for the affirmation of the separation of internet gaming (A+) and internet wagering (F1+) product categories.
The High Court’s decision follows a 2018 judgment on whether permit holders could offer different classifications of games (for instance, sports wagering and casino games) through the same internet address.
The ruling at that time was that providers could not do so because internet gambling should be treated in a comparable manner to land-based gambling. Belgian regulations already mandated that land-based establishments could not offer different product categories at the same location.
Previously, according to a 2017 judgment by the Brussels Court of Appeal, it was permissible to offer different classifications of games through the same internet address.
However, the subject of the 2018 case – Rocoluc, a provider holding a Class B gaming license and its B+ online equivalent license – argued that this was unjust.
The legal body declared: “The individual bringing the case asserts that they are at a disadvantage due to unfair competition resulting from the combined operation of gaming activities and wagering under the same internet address, thus demonstrating their reason for initiating the legal action.” “In the opinion of the individual bringing the case, this combined use enables the permit holder to benefit from increased visibility and achieve cost savings, generating significant income from gambling and advertising profits, which is not achievable in the real world.”
While the highest court in the land ruled at the time that the legislation should be repealed, the country’s executive branch subsequently disputed this ruling, with the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) also backing the challenge.
The executive branch argued that the 2018 ruling “was based on a misinterpretation of the relevant legal framework.”
It argued that a particular kind of casino operator could provide various forms of physical gambling in one location, implying that the court’s decision to prohibit the offering of multiple forms of gambling on the same website to ensure fairness between sectors was irrelevant.
Moreover, the executive branch argued that internet addresses and physical stores are not comparable. Instead, it stated that the equivalent of a physical store would be a website address, so online operators should be permitted to offer gambling on different website addresses within the same internet domain.
In the meantime, Roculuc was convinced the court had made its decision plain, while the Council of Ministers insisted it reverse its previous judgment due to insufficient evidence.
The court ultimately dismissed the Council of Ministers’ argument, declaring that “despite the Council of Ministers’ claims, engaging in gambling activities under a single entity would breach” the law.
Consequently, it upheld the revocation of the law.
Previously, the legislation concerning operating multiple games on one platform resulted in the Belgian Gaming Commission revoking the license of Austrian International Casino (CAI). This occurred after Betway provided online casino games under CAI’s A+ license through its dot.be domain, along with sports betting under its F1+ license.
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