The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit Gaming Authority (KSA), has recently formed an agreement with global cloud services provider Cloudflare to combat illegal gambling services in the Netherlands. This partnership aims to identify and stop those offering unlicensed gambling services within the country.
Under the terms of the agreement, Cloudflare will provide crucial information to assist the KSA in its investigations. This information will help the regulator to uncover the hosting parties behind illegal gambling providers and take necessary action to put an end to their activities. The KSA stated that the information provided by Cloudflare will be valuable in their efforts to tackle illegal gambling services effectively.
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The collaboration between the KSA and Cloudflare comes after an incident where the KSA initially ordered Cloudflare to cease providing services to two illegal gambling operators. However, further discussions between the two parties revealed that Cloudflare could not unilaterally block the operators, leading to the withdrawal of the order. Instead, both parties agreed to work together to combat illegal gambling activities in the Netherlands.
It is essential to note that offering games of chance in the Netherlands without a license from the KSA is prohibited, and promoting illegal gambling is also not permitted under the Gambling Act. To address this issue, the KSA implements various measures such as blocking payment providers and internet services to prevent illegal gambling activities.
In a recent report, the KSA highlighted the success of the Dutch market’s channelisation efforts, with 90% of players only gambling through legal websites. This surpasses the channelisation target of 80% set by the regulator. The report also revealed a gross gaming revenue of €1.39bn for the year ending 31 December 2023, indicating a 28% increase compared to the previous year. However, the growth in revenue slowed in the last six months, with only a 1% increase compared to the first half of the year.
In a significant move, the KSA imposed its largest-ever fine of €19.6m on Gammix Limited for offering games without a license. This fine is related to previous orders where Gammix was instructed to leave the Dutch market or face hefty weekly fines. Despite these orders, Gammix failed to comply, leading to the substantial penalty imposed by the KSA.
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The collaboration between the KSA and Cloudflare underscores the importance of tackling illegal gambling activities in the Netherlands effectively. By leveraging Cloudflare’s expertise and resources, the KSA aims to strengthen its enforcement measures and protect consumers from unlicensed gambling operators. This partnership marks a significant step towards creating a safer and more regulated gambling environment in the Netherlands..
The Dutch gambling regulator has formed an agreement with global cloud services provider Cloudflare that will see the latter assist in tackling illegal gambling services.
Under the terms of the agreement, Cloudflare will provide information to help identify those offering unlicensed services in the Netherlands. The Kansspelautoriteit Gaming Authority (KSA) can now actively question Cloudflare in its investigations to provide more information about the hosting parties behind illegal gambling providers.
“The information provided by Cloudflare can therefore be useful for the KSA’s investigations, with the aim of putting an end to the illegal supply,” the KSA said in a statement.
How Cloudflare will assist
The partnership comes after the KSA imposed and then withdrew an order against Cloudflare to cease providing services to two illegal gambling services providers.
Cloudflare was initially told to stop assisting the illegal affiliate websites NederlandsCasinos.net and OnlineCasinosSpelen.com following a KSA investigation. However, deliberations between the two revealed that Cloudflare could not unilaterally block the two operators.
KSA added: “It became clear that Cloudflare itself cannot take measures to end the violation, but can provide information that can help. That is why the binding instructions have been withdrawn and agreements have been made to combat illegal supply.
“It is prohibited to offer games of chance in the Netherlands without a licence from the KSA. Promoting illegal gambling is also not permitted under the Gambling Act.
“To combat illegal offers, the KSA takes various measures, for example erecting barriers at payment providers or internet providers. By ensuring that these intermediaries no longer offer their services to illegal providers, illegal offerings are made more difficult or possibly even stopped altogether.”
Dutch market’s channelisation success
Earlier this week, KSA’s sixth monitoring report on Dutch online gambling revealed that some 90% of players only gamble via legal websites. This is way above the channelisation target of 80%.
The reports showed gross gaming revenue (GGR) of €1.39bn for the year to 31 December 2023. This was up 28% compared to the same period in 2022. However, in the last six months the GGR increased just slightly by 1% compared to the first half of the year.
In March 2024, KSA issued its largest ever fine of €19.6m (£16.8m/$21.2m) to Gammix Limited for offering games without a licence.
In June 2022, Gammix was ordered to leave the Dutch market or risk paying €1.4m in weekly fines. The following March, the KSA ordered Gammix to pay €4.4m for not complying with an order to stop operating in the Netherlands.
This latest fine is related to these two previous orders, with the KSA noting that Gammix “has not taken any measures to ban players from the Netherlands”.
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iGB said Cloudflare to assist Dutch gambling regulator in tackling illegal providers – Legal
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