This story was published more than 4 years ago.
Mobile gaming specialist LeoVegas has prevailed in a Swedish court, with the judge overturning the country's gaming regulator's decision to only give Leo a two-year license, instead granting the group a five-year license.
The Swedish Administrative Court of Linköping issued the ruling this week, and stemmed from a case that LeoVegas filed after the gaming regulator Spelinspektionen only gave them a two-year license due to violations that occurred in the UK. LeoVegas was fined £600,000 in the UK for showing misleading ads, sending offers to self-excluded players, and failing to return funds to customers that closed their accounts.
For their part, the company claimed the self-exclusion errors were due to a computer error and were fixed as soon as they became aware of it. The funds not being returned all accounts were explained as having less than £1 in their account, which the company claims was due to a different interpretation of the regulations in the country. Marketing issues were blamed on affiliates, who didn't comply with UK laws.
LeoVegas claimed the shorter license decision wasn't warranted, given that it all stemmed from one report by the UK regulator, and that Spelinspektionen didn't do a full investigation. The court agreed, also noting that the violations occurred in 2016, which was almost three years before Swedish licensing decisions were made. The court granted LeoVegas a license for five years, during which time they'll be able to offer services to punters within Sweden.
Spelinspektionen is said to be unhappy with the decision and is considering appealing the ruling.
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Comments
Obviously a battle court win for the gambling brand there but I'm struggling to get why a 5y license has been so vital? I mean couldn't they just apply for another 2-3 years one after their current 2y is over...just a thought.
Yeah it sounds odd to me. I'm sure if the company misbehaves the regulator can cancel their license at any time so why would Spelinspektionen be upset that they have to grant a license for a few extra years? Reading between the lines it seems that they must oppose granting a license at all but perhaps don't have the legal backing to refuse it altogether.
sharpe
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With all of the fines these companies are getting in Sweden, a shorter license may have extra reviews, and the regulator could try to squeeze more money out of them, perhaps? That'd be the only thing I could see as a benefit of a 5 year license. More stability by knowing what you're going to be paying.
sharpe
Yeah I think both of you guys have empathized a relevant points there, my thinking was similar to that of Slim..what if in 2 years time taxes and fees are a lot more expensive than now, just recently there's been a news here that the Greek government decided to raise all the fees like double...so I guess it's quite possible.