Dutch Gaming Authority cracks down on two illegal providers of online games

The Dutch Gaming Authority Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa) imposed an order subject to periodic penalty payments on two illegal providers of online games of chance for admitting Dutch players. Winning Poker Network did not stop the offer after that and must therefore pay the penalty imposed. Goldwin Ltd. did cease operations after the burden was imposed.

With an order subject to periodic penalty payments, providers of illegal online games of chance are ordered to stop and keep stopped all activities for which they do not have a license in the Netherlands. If they do not comply, they must pay a penalty.

Offering online games of chance to players in the Netherlands is only allowed with a license from the Ksa. Strict rules and regulations apply to ensure that there is a safe legal offer, whereby players are assured of a fair game and are protected against gambling addiction.

“It must pay off for providers of games of chance to offer their games legally,” said René Jansen, chairman of the Ksa. “That is only possible if we take the wind out of illegal supply. We are fully committed to stopping these practices.”

Winning Poker Network previously received a warning that enforcement would follow and promised to stop offering online gambling for the Netherlands. A follow-up investigation by the Ksa revealed that this was not entirely the case. The original website americascardroom.eu was no longer accessible from the Netherlands, but a new account could easily be created on another website of the same provider, www.truepoker.eu. This made it possible to play on that website from the Netherlands. As a result of this violation, the Ksa has imposed an order subject to periodic penalty payments of 25,000 euros per week, with a maximum of 75,000 euros. The amount of the penalty is determined, among other things, by the size of the supply of the illegal provider.

Winning Poker's illegal offerings have not ceased at the time of this news release, with which the penalty is actually collected from Winning Poker Network. The investigation by the Ksa will also be continued after this penalty payment, with the aim of stopping this illegal offer completely. Enforcement action can then be taken again.

GoldWin Ltd. offered players in the Netherlands the opportunity to gamble online on the website westcasino.com, without having the correct license. They received a penalty of 239,000 euros, with a maximum of 717,000 euros. A re-investigation revealed that the violation has now ceased. However, the order subject to periodic penalty payments remains in full force. When Goldwin Ltd. again offers online games of chance to Dutch players, the periodic penalty payment will still be imposed.