France’s unified gaming regulator, L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ), is getting more control over the online gaming segment. It can now directly order ISPs and search engines to block unlicensed online operators in the country.
France’s government has granted the ANJ the right to take action against illegal gaming operators that target the country. As a result, any site that doesn’t have a license is persona non grata, and the regulator can now more easily push it out of the market.
Previously, France’s gaming regulators, unified through the creation of the ANJ, could intervene when they discovered an unlicensed platform. But shutting it down was difficult. Now, the regulator can tell ISPs and online search engines to block certain sites without having to cut through a lot of bureaucratic red tape like before.
The ANJ doesn’t have to prove that the site was necessarily targeting French consumers. It only has to consider it a threat to the country’s online gaming market.
ANJ’s power comes through amendments to the country’s “Law to Democratize Sport.” This legislation primarily deals with sports and sports betting, but lawmakers snuck in the additional language before approving the law on March 2.
Similar responses are emerging in other countries, including Sweden and the Netherlands. Lawmakers in both countries are taking a stronger position against unlicensed operators. More block requests in Australia have the Australian Communications and Media Authority asking for more power there, as well.
Betting Ads Get More Restrictions
In addition to clamping down on unlicensed operators, the ANJ is also looking at betting ads. It unveiled recently an action plan to better regulate the advertising practices of gambling operators. The plan includes “guidelines” and “recommendations” aimed at preventing excessive gambling and protecting minors.
The ANJ had committed to better regulate these practices in view of the “strong and unprecedented advertising pressure of betting operators that accelerated in 2021.” This was especially problematic during the Euro soccer championships in June and July, according to ANJ President Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin in comments to local media outlet AFP. She added that the regulator may ultimately impose sanctions in the event of a breach of the rules it lays down.
Six months later, the authority wanted to define clear rules that would be “fully operational” in September. This would see them arrive just in time for the FIFA World Cup in November and December. The rules follow the conclusion of an online consultation that included gambling operators, advertisers, health professionals and associations, sports federations, the educational community and the general public,
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