Key points:
- A €675,000 fine has been handed to NetX for unlicensed offerings
- The fine comes as a result of the company’s failure to comply with a cease-and-desist order from the KSA last summer
- This action sees the third fine handed out by the KSA in the past 10 days
The Dutch Gambling Authority (KSA) has issued a fine of €675,000 ($729,000) to NetX Betting Limited for running unlicensed online gambling on two separate websites.
Two NetX-operated websites, pferdewetten.de and betbird.com, have been found guilty of illegally offering online gambling in the Netherlands without the necessary permits. Subsequently, the KSA has imposed a €600,000 basic fine with an additional aggravating circumstance.
This is not the first time NetX has experienced a brush with the law in Holland, as the organisation was ordered to cease its operations within the Dutch market for previous violations of the Betting and Gaming Act FOR operating pferdewetten.de with no licence. Now, the operator will be subject to continuous financial penalties should it fail to comply with the KSA’s directives.
This announcement marks the third penalisation imposed on gambling organisations within the Dutch market by the KSA so far this month. BlockDance BV was also subject to a financial penalty for offering unlicensed gambling online – and Winbet, which has been found to be operating four illegal gambling websites and will receive a fine of €280,000 per week if it fails to cease operations.
Commenting on the latest news, Michel Groothuizen, Chairman of the Board of the KSA, said: "Dutch players need to be protected: that is why we are cracking down hard on illegal offers. We see that illegal providers often pay little attention to the player and do not adhere to a duty of care.
“Here, for example, we saw the practice that players who are inactive for a long time after creating an account are given a 'fine' by the provider. If they do not play for a certain period of time, an amount of €5 per month is charged. A player is then punished if he does not participate in the (illegal) games of chance offered. That of course goes beyond all bounds."
