E gaming Review
Alderney, the prestige European egaming domicile, has taken the landmark decision to allow its operators to accept sports bets from the US. The Alderney Gambling Control Commission voted on 28 February to adopt what it called “a free-market approach towards egambling”.
“[Alderney] will not prevent its licensees from offering gambling to players in other countries, whether it is egaming or ebetting,” an official statement said.
Andre Wilsenach, chief executive of the AGCC, said the current egaming environment meant the decision to accept bets from certain jurisdictions should be driven by regulators.
“The World Trade Organisation’s ruling in favour of Antigua showed the laws preventing gambling are not always put into place to effect players,” Wilsenach said.
“At the end of the day accepting bets from the US, China or wherever is a business decisions and not a regulatory one,” he added.
The decision by the AGCC still places the onus on the licensee to ensure it complies with legal requirements affecting it.
But Wilsenach said the AGCC had no intention of attempting to enforce the laws of other countries.
And Nigel Payne, chief executive of Sportingbet, said it was an important step for the online gambling sector.
“It is clear first-class jurisdictions such as Alderney have sufficient confidence in their procedures to overcome any issues the US may have, which is encouraging for us all,” Payne said.
Alderney’s decision comes hot on the heels of the Isle of Man’s announcement it would allows casino and poker operators to accept bets from the US.
But Wilsenach insisted this was not a tit-for-tat decision.
“We haven’t reconsidered due to what has happening in other jurisdictions, but because the playing field has changed,” Wilsenach said.
The UK government had previously said it would allow its operators to accept bets from the US.
But there are still concerns about the potential tax structure under a UK egaming regime, and Alderney is one of several domiciles looking to capitalise on any potential UK exodus.
And Payne said Alderney would now be a serious consideration for his firm.
“If our servers ended up not in the UK, then Alderney is one of the places I would be very happy to be,” he added.
Alderney has also issued its nineteenth egambling licence to WagerWorks, for the operation of www.wptonline.com in association with World Poker Tour.
