Is Online Gambling Legal In Denmark

  

Still, the signs are good that Denmark, like France, legitimately wants to move away from its existing state-owned monopolies and into a system that would allow foreign operators to enter its markets - great news for international online gaming companies, as well as online gambling affiliates with international ambitions. Aside from that, while it is often clear that general prohibitions against gambling also include online poker, it’s not crystal clear here in South Carolina, although it would seem quite a stretch to have to argue that online poker is not played with cards and is instead played with something else, graphics on a screen perhaps.

1. An overview of the Danish Gaming Act

The bill was part of an agreement between the Government (at that time it consisted of the Left political party and the Conservative People's Party) and the remaining political parties. During the negotiation of the bill, the Minister of Culture proposed introducing a law concerning the distribution of profits from gambling. The Minister of Finance also proposed a law concerning Danske Spil A/S. These proposals are all combined within the current gambling law.

The aim of the law is to undertake partial liberalization and modernization of the Danish gaming market. This means that licenses for the provision of betting and online casino can be achieved with a more permissive approach. The law also aims at maintaining the consumption of gaming services at a moderate level; to protect young people and other vulnerable persons from being exploited through gaming or developing a gaming addiction; to protect players by ensuring that gaming is provided in a fair, responsible and transparent manner; to ensure public order; and to prevent gaming as a means to support crime.

There must be a clear distinction between the monopolized games and the liberalized games, in order to secure the continuous provision of lottery by Danske Spil, Klasselotteriet and non-profit organizations. In this way, betting and online casino can and will be provided in a controlled and free competitive market by commercial game providers who have achieved the adequate Danish gaming provision license. However, the provision of dog or horseracing is solely reserved for Danske Spil. These races may only be organized as pool betting races.

The Danish gambling legislation unifies and simplifies the rules for the regulation and supervision of games under the authority of the Danish Ministry of Taxation. The Danish Gambling Authority, which is placed within the Danish Ministry of Taxation, is responsible for the administration and granting of licenses as well as the monitoring of the Danish gaming Market. The bill establishes safeguards against illegal game providers including preventive measures such as: payment blockage; Internet disruption; and maintaining the current ban on advertising.

The bill was adopted on 4 June 2010. The Danish Gaming Law entered into force on 1 January 2012.

1.1. Advertising

The Danish rules regarding advertising of gaming (land-based and online) are divided into two categories:

1.the general advertising rules that apply to all marketing

2.a specific set of rules that apply to gaming alone

The Danish marketing legislation is contained in the Danish Marketing Practices Law.

The provision of games is considered a sensitive area where aggressive marketing of gaming products may result in excessive consumption and (increased) dependency on gaming. With this in mind, it has therefore been necessary to impose limits on the marketing of games that go beyond the limits imposed by the provisions of the Danish Marketing Practices Law.

The Danish Gambling Authority has published a guide on the marketing of bonus offers by the provision of betting and online casino.

The Danish Gambling Authority has also published a guide in relation to the use of sales promotion measures when providing betting and online casino.

Advertising illegal gaming is considered a criminal act under Danish law and is punishable by fine or imprisonment. This applies to all parties who direct marketing towards the Danish market.

1.2. Amendments

There have only been minor amendments to the law since the legislation and the guidelines were published. These amendments have mainly been focused on the interpretation of the legislation and guidelines.

In order to register on a licence holder’s gaming site, a player has to use a player verification system based on the OCES-standard encryption, more specifically “NemID”. Furthermore, the player needs to use the NemID to log in every time the player intends to play.

Online

In March 2014, the Danish Gambling Authority issued a public consultation regarding new and updated certification and technical documents. This includes whether changes should be made in relation to the requirement for using NemID and whether a more situational access could be used without compromising safety. The Danish Gambling Authority also considered whether an exemption should be made form the requirement to use NemID in case of a breakdown of said encryption.

In September 2014, the Danish Gambling Authority announced that the exemption regarding the platforms that in the future would support the means of digital signature vested in the executive orders will lapse after the 31st of December 2014.

DanID – Supplier of the NemID-solution – has developed a new JavaScript solution for NemID, which functions on most mobile units. This means that the licence holders will have to implement and migrate to the new JavaScript solution before the 31st of December 2014.

From the 1st of January 2015 all logins, regardless of the platform, must be supported by the means of a digital signature.

In December 2014, the Danish Gambling Authority announced that the minister of taxation has signed the proposed changes to the executive orders on online casino and online betting. This means that the licence holders’ dispensations to not enforce NemID, on platforms that wasn’t supportive of NemID earlier, remained at play. It also meant that the licence holders could continuously offer games via mobile units and tablets without logging in via NemID.

The changes to the executive orders were published in Lovtidende at the end of the year 2014 and came in to force by the 1st of January 2015.

South Carolina is one of the more conservative states when it comes to gambling, and this might even be putting it mildly, as you will see as we have a look at their laws on gambling and gaming in general.

Let’s start with their law against playing games on Sunday:

“Whosoever shall keep or suffer to be kept any gaming table or permit an game or games to be played in his house on the Sabbath day, on conviction thereof before any court having jurisdiction, shall be fined in the sum of fifty dollars…”

So if you read this as your not being able to play any game on Sunday, regardless of whether it is being wagered on, you are correct. It is hard to imagine the authorities breaking down your door for playing checkers with your family on Sunday, but doing so would clearly be against the law.

So what about the other days of the week? Well let’s look at the section called “unlawful games and betting”:

“If a person shall play at any tavern, inn, store for the retailing of spirituous liquors or in any house used as a place of gaming, barn, kitchen, stable, or other outhouse, street, highway, open wood, race field, or open place at (a) a game of cards or dice, (b) any gaming table, commonly called A, B, C, D, E, O, or any gaming table known or distinguished by any other letters or by any other figures, (c) roley poley table, (d) rouge et noir, (e) any faro bank, (f) any other table or bank of the same or like kind under any denomination whatsoever, or (g) any machine or device licensed pursuant to Section 12-21-2720 and used for gambling purposes, except the games of billiards, bowls, backgammon, chess, draughts, or whilst when there is no betting on any such game of billiards, bowls, backgammon, chess draughts, or whilst or shall bet on the sides of hands of such as do game, upon being convicted thereof, before any magistrate, shall be imprisoned for a period not exceeding twelve months and forfeit a sum not exceeding two thousand dollars, for each and every offense…” (2)

So this is surely a mouthful, the good news is that you can play games such as billiards or chess so long as you do not bet on the outcome. The bad news is that any game involving cards or dice is illegal to play regardless of whether there are wagers on the game or not, at least in the listed venues.

This may be hard to believe but this is exactly what the law says in South Carolina. The intention may not have been to write it this broadly but they did manage to do that.

How This Applies To Poker Here

Obviously, if it is illegal to play any card game, as poker is indeed a card game, playing poker is therefore against the law in South Carolina, at least in certain places, and we‘ll have to look closely at where these places would be to determine that.

Aside from not being able to play cards at inns or commercial establishments that serve alcohol, the next stipulation, “any house used as a place of gaming” is one we have to look at. The term house here is probably used more broadly then one’s residence, but we do know that it does include that for sure as they refer to “kitchen” as well. So house likely means any enclosed location, and they do specify that out buildings also are included, as well as any open place.

So this actually is as comprehensive as they could have made it and they could have said instead that these games are not permitted at any location whatsoever in the state. So the certain places that we were wondering about as far as the scope of this would be anywhere at all.

Once again it bears to keep in mind that we’re not just talking gambling at poker, we’re talking playing it at all, and that part is quite clear in the law. The only mention of cards or dice is that they are included in the scope of the law, and the games that qualify as exemptions provided that they do not involve gambling, such as chess and backgammon, does not include cards or dice, which are simply prohibited.

Playing Poker In South Carolina

It is not that poker is illegal here but they have licensed establishments that offer it, there are none to be had in this state. The only permitted gambling in the state of South Carolina is playing the state lottery. No para-mutual wagering is allowed and they even have a specific law against the use of punch boards.

There’s no social gaming exemptions here either, the only way you can play poker legally is to take an offshore cruise, they have two that offer casino betting but only one that offers poker, the Sun Cruz Casino. (2)

Gambling

Aside from that, while it is often clear that general prohibitions against gambling also include online poker, it’s not crystal clear here in South Carolina, although it would seem quite a stretch to have to argue that online poker is not played with cards and is instead played with something else, graphics on a screen perhaps. There is no real legal substance to this argument though and courts generally will not permit such a narrow view, particularly when the claim runs so counter to the intention underlying the law, which is very much the case here.

As always, what the law says is one thing but how it’s being enforced is another. The focus in South Carolina is on operators of gambling establishments and schemes, such as the recent conviction of a Greenville man who had been running illegal gambling for 23 years before being arrested. He testified that in the years prior to the bust, law enforcement knew about it and merely told him to move it “off the beaten path.” (3)

My ONLY Recommendation for Online Poker in South Carolina? Ignition Poker.

References:

(1) South Carolina Code of Laws, 16-19-40, Unlawful Games and Betting

(2) SunCruz Casino Poker

Is Online Gambling Legal In Denmark

(3) South Carolina Illegal Gambling Convict Accuses Greenville County Sheriffs Department

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