Last Call for New Entrants in the Italian Gaming Market

Share This Article

After more than a year of delays, the Italian decree regulating online poker cash games and casino games has finally been published on the Italian Official Gazette and therefore has now come into force.
No real surprises have been unveiled by the decree. Indeed, as already prescribed by the previous version of the decree, subsequently challenged by Italian network provider Microgame, it introduces the following changes:

Tax on casino and cash poker games will be 20% of gross profits. This is an historical change for the Italian gaming market, as all the other games currently offered have a taxation regime based on turnover rather than profit. Hopefully this new tax regime will not lead to lower tax entries and convince AAMS to adopt the same mechanic also with reference to the other games
The percentage of bets to be returned to players through winnings will be 90%
The maximum initial stake during each gaming session will be €1,000
The maximum buy-in for poker tournaments/skill games will be €250 (it was €100)

There are very high expectations associated with the launch of these new games, especially after a tremendous 2010 which saw the Italian remote gaming market grow by 28% to reach €4.8bn in annual turnover, with the arrival of casino and cash poker offering a potential doubling of this within two years.
However, current operators shall still have to wait before being able to launch these new games. Indeed, the decrees approved by AAMS stipulate that such games can be offered only after the publication of the decree on the issuing of new licenses, and once current licences have been upgraded to the new regime.

This means that new entrants in the market might be able to compete in these new games under almost the same conditions as existing operators, provided that following the publication of the decree on the new licences (expected in the next month or so) they are fully compliant with the technical requirements prescribed by Italian law. These are of course well known to be very stringent.

In this context, potential new entrants might consider acquiring a current licensee in order to be able to go live together with the current operators, and therefore not risking any competitive disadvantage.

The Italian casino gaming market thus offers the potential to put current operators and new entrants on the same footing, but new entrants in the market will need to react quickly in order to enjoy the full benefits of this regulatory delay.

Do you want to know more about the above? Do you need legal assistance to enter into the Italian market? Feel free to contact me, Giulio Coraggio.

(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)