March 22, 2011

Greece drops egaming black period

The Greek government has dropped the proposed black period from the draft egaming bill it presented to its parliament last week, which would have required applicant operators to cease activity in the market until approved.

The “black period” clause had been present in the initial draft released by the government in January, leading to fears operators would have to suspend operations until licensed, with the likes of Sportingbet, which generates 15% of NGR from Greece, particularly affected.

While companies will still be required to incorporate in Greece in order to qualify, several of the financial requirements have been lowered, with those licensed only needing a minimum share capital of €400k (compared to €500k before), and a letter of credit for €200k (instead of €300k) in order to enter the tender process.

Other changes introduced include the lowering of the participation fee (minimum bet) from €5 to between €0.10 and €2. The issuing of a player ID card also becomes compulsory.

The Danish government also proposed a “black period” ahead of the regulation of its egaming market, until a complaint over tax rates to the EC compressed the possible timeframe for this to be implemented and enforced.

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