Hungary violated fundamental freedom to provide services regarding online gambling, the European Court has ruled.
It concluded that member states should guarantee that national regulation on online gambling services “meets objective, transparent, non-discriminatory and proportionate criteria.”
The European Gaming and Betting Association commented that the ruling was “a clear message to other gaming authorities, including the Dutch Gaming Authority, that they must not enforce regulation that does not comply with basic EU law.”
The Netherlands is a case where national legislation has been found to be incompatible with the Treaty. Enforcement actions against EU licensed operators unlawfully excluded from national licensing processes are prohibited and not in compliance with EU law, the European Court ruled.
Hungary had prohibited a cross-border operator licensed in the EU to lawfully provide its services in Hungary. It did so by failing to organise a licensing tender published according to the correct criteria.
