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Belgium To Censor Internet To Control Gambling

13 December 2011 by CasinoListings

This story was published more than 11 years ago.

The Belgian Gaming Commission is set to enforce a law that will force internet service providers to block online wagering sites that are not licensed starting in January.

The BGC has reportedly already supplied the black list to Belgium based ISPs. Many of the sites are licensed in the European Union, but not licensed in the country. The list will be regularly updated, and a shorter "white list" is also being made available which includes gambling sites that are licensed inside of Belgium.

It is currently estimated that 30 to 40,000 Belgian citizens currently play at licensed online casinos while industry analysts believe that three to four times this number play at unlicensed sites.

The BGC has stated its strategy will be to target gambling sites with the most users first in order to put a large dent in the amount of illegal gambling taking place.

Belgium's strategy hasn't exactly sat well with the rest of the European Union, with the European Commission taking issue with censoring the internet. When the action takes effect, it is likely that online gambling companies will pursue litigation up to the European Court of Justice.