Swedish gambling regulations can drive players to foreign casino sites
Despite the introduction of the Swedish Gambling Act , many players continue to choose foreign casino sites over domestic ones. It is mainly the gambling restrictions of the Swedish companies that drive players to casinos without a Swedish license , according to the Swedish gambling companies that speak to a report from the State Treasury.
Just over one in three Swedes play for money online at least once a quarter. This is shown by statistics from the Swedish Gambling Inspectorate. Online casino games have in recent years become a hobby for many Swedes, and in order to reduce the negative consequences that this hobby can result in, a new gambling law was introduced in Sweden in 2019.
The Gambling Act made it possible for commercial gambling companies to establish themselves in Sweden and target Swedish players. The counterclaim is that they must apply for, and be granted, a gambling license from the supervisory authority Spelinspektionen. The license covers a wide range of security requirements that the companies are obliged to follow. Om du är intresserad av ett riktigt pålitligt casino hittar du det på en sida https://svenskaspelautomater360.com som listar de bästa av de bästa casinona i Sverige.
Despite the Gambling Act, Swedes still have the opportunity to visit foreign casino sites , i.e. those that are outside Sweden's licensing system. As these casinos have a license issued by a foreign authority, not infrequently in Malta, they do not have to adapt to Swedish security requirements and rules.
Stable degree of channelization - but the goal has not yet been achieved
One of the goals of the Gambling Act is to reduce the number of players who choose casinos without a Swedish license, as the Swedish state does not have the opportunity to control the security of these. The so-called channelization rate is used to show how large a proportion of gambling takes place with Swedish players.
In 2018, the year before the Gambling Act came into force, the channeling rate was measured at less than 50 percent, according to the State Treasury. This means that more than half of Swedes' games for money were placed with foreign players.
When the gaming market was reregulated, the government assessed that a channelization rate of at least 90 percent would be possible. But after just over three years of the new law, the goal has not yet been achieved. In the first year of the law, channelization was measured at 88 percent , in 2020 at 85 and in 2021 at 87.
Channelization rate lowest for online casino
The State Treasury's estimated degree of channeling is an average figure where all forms of gambling exposed to competition have been combined. However, it is pointed out that the channeling varies between different types of games.
In the report, the State Office believes that a generally recognized opinion is that channeling is at its highest when it comes to betting on horses. After conversations with players in the industry, it is estimated that approximately 99 percent of Swedes' horse betting takes place at Swedish betting companies.
Based on statistics from the Gambling Inspectorate, the Statskontoret assesses that gambling by foreign players is more common in online casinos than other forms of gambling. Here, the channelization rate can be as low as 75 percent.
Bonus offers attract players to casinos without a Swedish license
In the report, the Swedish gambling companies themselves are also allowed to speak. They must answer a survey to indicate what they think are the reasons why Swedes choose to play at a casino without a Swedish license. The reason most people think drives players to foreign casinos is that these sites can offer more attractive bonus offers.
The background to this is that the Swedish Gaming Act at most allows each player to take part in a bonus - a so-called welcome bonus. At unlicensed casinos, offers can be larger, both in terms of number and money to play for. This means that approximately 6 out of 10 players surveyed have great or very great importance for the players' choice of site.
Absence of Game break and deposit limits probable reasons
It then follows that players are blocked via Spelpaus as a reason, as a block makes it impossible to gamble for money on both Swedish sites and at gambling agents. Foreign casinos are not connected to the Swedish register for self-exclusion, which means that you can play at them even though you have self-excluded.
Other common reasons are believed to be that foreign casinos rarely require deposit limits, that they can offer better odds/returns and that there is a greater opportunity to remain anonymous as a player.
Proposal for an extended advertising ban
Today, the Internet is by far the most common place to gamble for money, and this is where most gambling companies are represented. This means that today it is easy to find casinos to play at. The State Treasury refers to a report from Copenhagen Economics which states that today it is just as easy to find casinos with a foreign license as it is to find Swedish casinos that target Swedish players.
The claim is supported by a report from the Gambling Inspectorate, where half of those who have played on a foreign casino site, 47 percent, believe that they found it via an internet search. Other common ways to find the foreign players are to get tips from another player or to be exposed to advertising. Respective options are stated by 31 percent to be how they found the foreign gambling site in question.
For actors who lack a Swedish license, it is illegal to market themselves or target Swedish players. In 2022, the government has submitted a referral to the Legislative Council to strengthen gambling regulation. The referral includes a point specifically about the ban on advertising for unlicensed games, which is to be expanded to also apply to foreign media platforms. If the proposal is adopted, the change is proposed to come into force on January 1, 2023.
