• Σχόλιο του χρήστη 'Θανάσης Γερολυμάτος' | 8 Σεπτεμβρίου 2010, 15:55

    Brussels, 8 September 2010 In landmark ruling the ECJ concludes that the German sports betting and lotteries monopoly is unjustified and inconsistent Three preliminary rulings(1) handed down today by the European Court of Justice confirm that the “German rules do not limit games of chance in a consistent and systematic manner” and stresses that “national rules concerning that monopoly, held to be contrary to the fundamental freedoms of the Union, cannot continue to apply during the time necessary to bring it into conformity with (European) Union law” (ECJ press release 78/10). The Court stresses in particular that “the holders of public monopolies carry out intensive advertising campaigns with a view to maximize profit from lotteries thereby departing from the objectives justifying the existence of those monopolies”. The Interstate Treaty on Gambling that came into force in 2008 and was supposed to expire at the end of 2011 currently bans online gaming and betting activities in the country. In a recent study Gold Media concluded that the ban had no effect on the yearly 30% growth in consumer demand for online gaming and betting in Germany, but rather had pushed the consumer to portals operated outside of Germany.