.svg)
Body
The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has said it is taking enforcement action against 15 affiliates that have been promoting unlicensed online gambling operators.
The enforcement agency said it investigated 22 websites and found 15 in violation.
The KSA issued cease and desist orders against 13 of the websites, with two still under investigation.
It will re-inspect the websites after the order has been imposed and those still in violation face an unspecified penalty, the regulator said on Friday (December 3).
In some of the cases under investigation the affiliate immediately ended the violation and, in others, the website switched to promoting legal operators, the authority said.
The previous week, a group that organised illegal online bingo games was removed from Facebook at the KSA’s request, the authority said.
The group, Dordtse Queens, had eight administrators and almost 10,000 members were participating in the illegal bingo games, the authority said. Minors were found to be participating in the games.
Facebook removed six pages at the regulator’s request.
Also last month, the authority said it was examining 25 online gambling sites to see if they are accessible to Dutch residents.
If they are available to Dutch players, the regulator said it will take enforcement action against the organisers, as well as payment processors that enable transactions.
There are currently 11 legal online licensees, with JOI Gaming, operating under the jacks.nl website and using the Jack’s brand name, the latest to receive approval.
Finally, three external experts have recently been appointed as advisors to the board of directors of the KSA over applications for involuntary registration to CRUKS, the nationwide gambling self-exclusion programme.
Dutch law allows for a third party, such as a gambling operator or a family member, to apply to have a person excluded from gambling for six months.
The experts are: mental health counsellor Bas Brons; clinical psychologist Mieke Hoste; and addiction specialist Marcel Marijnissen.
Teething problems with the CRUKS system hampered the first few weeks of the licensed online market’s launch in October.
