A court in Germany has ruled that Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder, the country’s gambling regulator, can penalise operators if their advertising appears on an affiliate website that also displays illegal operations.
The Higher Administrative Court of the State of Saxony-Anhalt confirmed that the GGL had such authority in response to the regulator recently issuing a fine to a licensed operator for advertising on an affiliate website that also featured unregulated operations.
The court ruling confirmed that any bonus or discount advertising must clearly state information regarding their reason, duration and the benefit amount the player will receive for participating. Free-to-play online casino, poker and virtual slot machine games are also still banned.
A “white list” must also be available to direct players towards regulated operations, stated the court, as well as information on gambling age-limit rules, addiction risks and help available to those that need it.
The GGL said: “The Higher Administrative Court finds that affiliates who link to illegal games of chance on websites are advertising for illegal gambling, which is not compatible with the objectives of the State Treaty on Gambling.
“Accordingly, the prohibition is necessary in order not to give the impression that permitted gambling is on an equal footing with illegal gambling. The court does not absolve providers of their responsibility to ensure that affiliates only advertise permitted gambling.”
