The chair of the KSA reflects on the "early problems" of the Dutch igaming launch

René Jansen, chair of the Dutch gaming regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), remarked on the first year of the Dutch online gambling sector, stating the country is working to provide a "totally safe environment for anyone who wish to gamble online."

Following the one-year anniversary of legal igaming in the Dutch market, the reflection appeared in a blog post on the KSA website. This came after a report on the country's first year of operation.

The research provides insight into how the market has grown, focusing mostly on the period to July 30, 2022, but also including statistics from after that date.

According to the research, the Netherlands has an 85% channelisation rate. It also found that the Dutch igaming market produced an average of €80 million (£74.5 million/$82.4 million) in gross gaming revenue each month.

There were 22 licenced online gaming operators in the Netherlands as of September 30, 2022. When the market first opened a year ago, there were ten licenced operators. However, according to the report, this has not resulted in an increase in the number of persons participating.

Jansen stated in it that, while there had been obstacles, they had provided an opportunity to recalibrate some of the procedures that had been implemented.

“Step by step, we are getting even closer to the desired ultimate goal: a completely safe environment for people who want to gamble online, without any place for illegal providers,” said Jansen. “It is certainly not uncommon that there are initial difficulties when applying a new law or imperfections in the accompanying regulations.”

“It is important to make the right adjustments on the basis of the observed facts, whereby the right balance must always be sought.”

Jansen also urged against placing excessive limitations, claiming that this would increase black market gaming.

“Too strict regulation of legal providers can cause illegal providers to be sought out too often,” he said. “The right choices must be made, partly with the help of our reports. This also applies to the Gaming Authority itself.”

“The purpose of these periodic reports is always to provide a factual picture of the early state of affairs and to outline the developments,” continued Jansen. “As is known, it took the Netherlands a long time to legalise online gambling; political views on this were and are divided.”

“Ultimately, a political majority was in favor of creating a safe environment for those people who gamble over the internet.”

By fLEXI tEAM