New protective measures for online gambling in Amsterdam, and the Netherlands in general have been launched by the Dutch government, pointing to the fact that they are still committed to practices of reducing risky gambling. These regulations that went into effect today is designed to – protect players or minimize the risks associated with gambling.
As part of the new plans, online gambling operators have been tasked with improving their age verification procedure in order to deter underage gambling. This encompasses issuing frequent identity checks and applications of sophisticated technology that can only allow the operations of maturity-age persons in online gambling sites. Furthermore, operators are required to disclose considerably more information concerning the dangers of gambling and make available convenient means by which players could set their spending and gameplay limitations.
Another major feature of the new regulation is the cooling-off period for a player who, for instance, asked for a temporary ban on his activity at the gambling table. Currently, operators have to impose a minimum 72-hour cooling off period when the player wants to use a timeout. This measure is intended to can help gamers decide the need for altering their gamble habits to avoid times that they will sit down and jeopardize their wealth recklessly.
The authority commenced in 2012 with a more limited portfolio and has recently received new competencies to supervise and enforce these new regulations. The KSA will undertake periodic reviews on the operators offering online gambling services and possesses the power to fine violators of the new standards heavily.
They are taken in regard to emerging tendencies of the negative influence of online gambling, which was legalized in the Netherlands in October 2021. American professionals in the field of addictions have indicated a sharp rise in gambling-related issues, especially among the youth following the opening of the market.
The State Secretary for Legal Protection, Teun Struycken, underlined the need to pay special attention to the needs of a special category of citizens, including young people, within the framework of the ongoing discussion of the Remote Gambling Act. This is our most important value, and Struycken said we are committed to safeguarding a responsible and secure gambling environment. ‘’These new measures are a step to realizing that noble goal.’’
The online gambling industry has really grown since the legalisation and currently one can finds 27 companies with licences to operate in Amsterdam and the Netherlands. As this has led to enhancement of economic productivity it has also led to more worries relating to the social impacts of elevated gambling liberalization.
Most of the parties in the industry have welcomed the new measures in the bill for the regulation of gambling, admitting the call for the measures on practice of safe gambling. Nonetheless, some operators have expressed concern on the now perceived threats especially the wave of extra operating expenses occasioned by the implementation of new standards.
The changes have been broadly applauded by player advocacy groups, who regard the changes as necessary in order to safeguard consumers. But they also keep on insisting on being cautious and carrying out more research with regard to the impacts of online gambling in the Netherlands.
These new measures have been adopted alongside discussions of gambling taxation in the Netherlands. In 2011, the government planned to raise gambling taxes, and the Holland Casino and other operators have widely disagreed with that decision, saying that high taxes would hinder their margins and force players to go to the black market.
They need to ensure that they develop a healthy compromise between developing a sustainable gambling industry and preventing negative social impact on their populace as Amsterdam and the rest of the Netherlands move forward. The success of these new measures is best described as a work in progress that will continue in the next few months, with the prospects of revising the measures as market data is gathered regarding the effects of Internet gambling on Dutch society.
These measures, therefore, are welcomed in the Dutch gambling market as part of a general trend in Europe, where there are stricter regulations for online gambling. If these measures work or fail, the affiliate’s influence on gambling policies will not only be for the Netherlands but possibly for other countries that have observed the Dutch model in the years to come.
