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Dutch Gambling Watchdog Fires Warning to ‘Corona-Free’ Online Casinos
By Jeff Osienya Mar 20, 2020 IndustryDutch KSA lashes out at online casinos that are using the coronavirus outbreak to target brick-and-mortar players in the Netherlands. The gambling regulator warned that such deeds could impact their upcoming iGaming license applications.On Tuesday, KSA (Kansspelautoriteit), the Dutch gambling regulator released an official statement, issuing a stern warning to the unethical means of advertising used by illegal offshore casinos. In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, offshore casinos have been targeting Dutch players using Corona-free promotions now that their land-based casino gaming facilities have been shut down.
Rene Jansen, chairman of the KSA angrily referred to the digital marketing stunt as “completely objectionable”. That’s because the said operators are trying to use a global pandemic to woo gamers to their platforms illegally as online gambling isn’t in operation yet in the Netherlands. The alleged operators who reportedly have international licenses tried to lure in Dutch players using an offensive marketing term, “Corona-FREE gaming”.
“Cooling-Off” Period Still in Effect
While the so-called “corona-FREE” casinos were not expressly pointed out by the Dutch watchdog, Jansen condemned their actions by warning that such actions will weigh heavily during the application process when the country finally okays online gambling laws. The licensing application process is scheduled to commence as from January 2021, with a goal of officially going operational in six months.
Offshore operators that are actively targeting the Dutch market are risking their licenses for good, particularly since the “cooling-off period” policy is still in effect. Earlier on in 2019, the Netherlands Gambling Authority decreed that before foreign gambling operators apply for a license for the Dutch market, they must not have directly targeted the Dutch market for two years before the application.
This cooling-off measure was put in place to ensure that regulated interactive gambling in the country will take off on a clean slate. Therefore, by the time this policy expires in July 1st 2021, the prying operators who are illegally targeting players will be barred straightaway from applying for licenses. They will have to stand aside for at least two years before being permitted in the new regulated iGaming environment in the Netherlands.
Complete Lockdown in Anomalous COVID-19 Spread
Like many other corona-infested European-countries and most gambling legal states in the USA, Netherlands has also adopted a scorching approach of complete lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus. As a result, all 14 land-based casinos in the Netherlands have also ceased operations.
Similarly, the Dutch government also ordered the closure of all non-essential spots like cafe’s, restaurants, bars and any other venue where over 100 individuals regularly congregate at a time. It’s no wonder why offshore casinos are zeroing in on the Dutch market to take advantage of the situation.
To date, over 2,000 coronavirus cases and 58 deaths have already been reported in Holland. And according to the EIVM public health institute, the death toll is rising terrifyingly. Fatal cases from the infection have shot from 24 to 58 since Monday.
Moreover, it’s quite alarming that, of all the Coronavirus victims in Intensive Care in Dutch hospitals, about half of them are younger than 50 years. This trend goes against the current statistics, which indicate that persons over the age of 60 are most vulnerable to severe complications from the viral infection.
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