Swedish court supports regulator in gambling advert case
News on 13 Oct 2018
News on 13 Oct 2018
The ongoing struggle between Swedish regulator Lotteriinspektionen and regional publications carrying advertisements for international online gambling operators reached a new phase Friday when the Swedish Administrative Court enforced an injunction and ordered the publication Nyheter24 to cough up a fine of SEK 100,000 for failing to remove links to said international websites.
The case has its roots back in 2014, when the regulator initiated the injunction against Nyheter, citing unlawful activity in promoting unlicensed operators (who at the time were not accepted for licensing anyway).
The regulator was seemingly trying to stop the flood of advertising placed with Swedish publications by international operators keen on accessing the Swedish punter, it has to be said to the distress of the state run Svenska Spel local gambling monopoly.
The injunction came into force late 2017 following the support of the Supreme Administrative Court, and shortly thereafter Lotteriinspektionen went after Nyheter24 and other publications for maintaining hyperlinks to international online gambling websites.
Nyheter now faces the choice of continued defiance, paying the fine and de-linking, or launching an appeal via the Chamber of Commerce. The latter course appears unlikely of success in the wake of a recent Swedish Appeal Court ruling that upheld fines imposed on two other publications for the same offence.
News on 13 Oct 2018
The ongoing struggle between Swedish regulator Lotteriinspektionen and regional publications carrying advertisements for international online gambling operators reached a new phase Friday when the Swedish Administrative Court enforced an injunction and ordered the publication Nyheter24 to cough up a fine of SEK 100,000 for failing to remove links to said international websites.
The case has its roots back in 2014, when the regulator initiated the injunction against Nyheter, citing unlawful activity in promoting unlicensed operators (who at the time were not accepted for licensing anyway).
The regulator was seemingly trying to stop the flood of advertising placed with Swedish publications by international operators keen on accessing the Swedish punter, it has to be said to the distress of the state run Svenska Spel local gambling monopoly.
The injunction came into force late 2017 following the support of the Supreme Administrative Court, and shortly thereafter Lotteriinspektionen went after Nyheter24 and other publications for maintaining hyperlinks to international online gambling websites.
Nyheter now faces the choice of continued defiance, paying the fine and de-linking, or launching an appeal via the Chamber of Commerce. The latter course appears unlikely of success in the wake of a recent Swedish Appeal Court ruling that upheld fines imposed on two other publications for the same offence.
