In the Netherlands online gambling is currently illegal. That may not be like this forever, but for the foreseeable time in any case. The Dutch Lower House favoured an online gambling bill a few months ago, which would enable international operators to apply for a Dutch gambling license in the future and thus offer their service legally in the country. But before that can happen, the Dutch Senate will also have to approve the bill. Opinions on the matter may be exchanged later this year, but it is not actually expected for a proper regulation to be in place before 2018. Considering that the matter has been debated among Dutch politicians for a number of years already, the pace does not seem surprising.
Be that as it may, since gambling is currently illegal in the country, the Dutch gambling authority, Kansspelautoriteit, requested that Apple remove Dutch gambling apps from its App Store. These were indeed real money gambling apps from such operators as Unibet or Bwin. In total 55 such apps were removed by Apple.
Kansspelautoriteit actually requested the removal of these apps back in May already, pointing out that online gambling is illegal in the country and that the operators behind the apps had never been authorized to provide their services to Dutch customers. Serious fines could be incurred in case of non-compliance.
And indeed, those weren’t empty threats either. Last summer Kansspelautoriteit fined two UK-based companies, Total E Soft Ltd. and XKL Ltd., a total of €180,000, because they were both running gaming and sports betting sites in the Dutch market. These sites have also been blocked by the Dutch gambling authority.
It is certainly interesting to note that Google Play does not allow real money gambling apps at all. Any online casino or sports betting operator offering an Android app has to make their app available for download on their own websites.
It’s unclear whether Apple might take the same approach in the future. Whilst the apps have been removed from the Dutch App Store, they are still available for download in all other markets. It would appear that gambling authorities have to specifically request their removal for a market, if online gambling is illegal there.