.svg)
The head of Germany’s Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States (GGL) has called for more action against illegal operators and extra powers to tackle illegal gambling.
Ronald Benter, CEO of GGL, said a new standard for IP blocking against advertisers should be introduced “as quickly as possible” during a panel discussion on measures to combat illegal gambling hosted by the German Vending Machine Industry Association (DAW).
Benter said the regulator needs a wide range of tools to combat illegal gambling and reiterated support for a “rapid amendment” to Section 284 of the German Criminal Code to cover illegal providers that are based abroad.
“This would create the legal basis for the state of Saxony-Anhalt to establish a specialised public prosecutor's office in Halle. This would be an important additional tool for effectively combating illegal providers,” the GGL said in a press release on March 13.
Additionally, the GGL's ban of unlicensed gambling adverts on Google is facing challenges as unlicensed operators continue to find new ways to increase their visibility, according to the regulator.
“As an enforcement authority, we address every form of unauthorised advertising. We are thus ensuring that all permitted providers can and must operate under the same framework," Benter said.
The GGL has previously claimed that the online black market accounts for less than 10 percent of German online gambling revenue, while trade group DSWV estimated the black market to be 50 percent.
In recent months, GGL has been bolstered by a court ruling in its fight against illegal gambling.
In October 2024, an administrative court confirmed its decision to bar a payments service provider based in Switzerland from facilitating transactions for illegal gambling offers.
The ruling signals that payment service providers must comply with German gambling regulations and the GGL will continue to target international payments processors.
Additionally, in July 2024, a German court affirmed the right of the GGL to ban streaming of online slots games from foreign venues.
The court said that streaming in German can be assumed to be aimed at the primary German-speaking areas and therefore can be addressed by the GGL.
Over the next two years, the interstate treaty on gambling will be evaluated, and three studies on player protection, gambling advertising and channelisation of players to the legal market will guide future policy.
