Dutch gambling operators chastised by regulator over child-facing content

licensed Dutch gambling operators have come under fire from the Dutch gaming authority, the Kansspelautoriteit, for marketing their services on websites with child-oriented content.

The six operators were: Holland Casino, Bankgiroloterij, Nationale Postcode Loterij, and Staatsloterij (the Dutch State Lottery). All were all issued with cease and desist letters by the Kansspelautoriteit over content on website domains called scholieren.com, donaldduck.nl, and spelletjes.nl.

Under current Dutch advertising law, which entered into service in 2013, gambling websites are strictly prohibited from advertising to minors and all of the operators must cease the operation of these websites immediately or risk financial penalties of up to €100,000.

In addition, Dutch online gaming operators and their affiliates are not allowed to target local players by using typically Dutch symbols, such as tulips and windmills with all .nl affiliate websites being prohibited from directing Dutch players to .com online gaming websites.

This latest raft of cease and desist letters follows similar actions against Catena Media and Betsson over the content of their web pages earlier this year. With a temporary gambling tax hike of 1.1% set to come into effect from the start of next year, many operators are choosing to exit the Dutch market as a result of both this and the hardening regulatory outlook.