Turkey Telecomms regulator serious about blocking online gambling sites

Don’t doubt the determination of Turkish regulators to block online gambling sites found to be offering unauthorised services to Turkish punters, is the message from the Turkish National Lottery and TIB, the country’s telecommunications regulator.

In an annual report released to the public Monday TIB revealed that over the past five years it has blocked 110 illegal online gambling websites as part of a collaborative drive with the National Lottery.

The National Lottery demanded action against 440 websites over the period in question after tracking foreign betting and gambling websites.

It requested the cooperation of TIB, asking the telecommunications regulator to close 93 websites in 2009, 119 websites in 2010, 110 websites in 2011, 88 websites in 2012 and 30 websites in 2013.

The TIB blocked internet access to 110 of the websites on the grounds that the pages were providing online gambling services.

Terrestrial gambling premises were closed down in 1997 in Turkey, forcing many local punters who still wished to have a flutter to move to the internet.

The national government gave TIB authority to block access to online gambling and illegal betting sites in November 2007.