Brussels, 03/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - In Brussels on Tuesday 2 October, the European Gambling and Betting Association (EGBA)presented its demands for the future action plan of the European Commission, initially scheduled for the month of September and now anticipated over the course of this month, and called on the European executive to carry out “strong” action to fight the fragmentation of the online gaming market and to reinforce consumer protection, according to a press release. The European private operators, meeting within the EGBA, also submitted a complaint to the Commission against the new German regime governing betting and gambling, the lobby group continues.
The association feels that the Commission”s action plan should act on the end of the “27 mini markets”, on the fight against illegal gambling and on procedures to grant licences to pan-European operators, procedures which EGBA would like to be “open, fair and transparen”", says Sigrid Ligné, the secretary general of the association.
Above all, the association calls on the Commission not to abandon infringement procedures against member states and to continue to follow up any regime which discriminates against European gambling operators. The EGBA reminds Michel Barnier of the commitment he made in June of this year to take up his “responsibilities” and to enforce the treaty. In the view of the EGBA, the situation “is getting worse” and several member states are putting in place highly questionable regimes which fail to comply with Community law. Nine infringement proceedings are outstanding and the Commission must reactivate them, says the EGBA. Germany, which was ruled against by the Court of Justice of the EU, has partially opened up its online gambling market thanks to a new law which has been in force since July. Greece was also condemned at the end of September over the monopoly of the Greek gambling and betting operator, OPAP, and notably on the discriminatory tax regime applied to other operators present on the Greek market. (SP/transl.fl)