Quebec government to appeal strikedown of its gambling bill

Local media reports from Quebec province in Canada are that the provincial Attorney General has lodged a notice of appeal against the Quebec Supreme Court following its August strike down of provincial gambling legislation that sought to block online gambling competition to the state-owned provincial monopoly through domain blocking.

The legislation – Act 74 – was passed in 2016 despite vociferous opposition from legal experts, local internet rights action bodies and the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association. The latter subsequently challenged the government’s ban in the Supreme Court, rejecting political claims that restrictions were necessary to avoid potential health problems arising from gambling (see previous reports).

The provincial government estimated that over 2,200 websites would be blocked, with up to 8.2 million residents denied access to banned sites. Internet Service Providers required to implement the blocks would be handed punitive fines for non-compliance.

The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association action was successful, with the presiding judge finding that Act 74 is not only against the best interests of the state, but is also a violation of the Canadian Radio-Television Commission Act, which argues against monopolies and for net neutrality. The judge additionally noted that claiming to protect the public  at large from hypothetical circumstances was no reason to pass legislation, and that it is not the responsibility of ISPs to police on the government’s behalf the websites that are using their services.  Instead, they are required to act as messengers to provide a service to consumers, he opined.

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