The Swedish government has approved the proposal to introduce a number of temporary restrictions on the country's licensed online casino market as a way to protect players from gambling-related risks, during the ongoing corona pandemic (COVID-19).
The new restrictions will come into force from 2 July and will remain in place until the end of 2020. The restrictions will apply to online casino games and slot machines, but not to casinos without a Swedish licence in 2020.In any case, you can find a good casino for yourself and without a Swedish license. Where? On the website onlinecasinoexpert.net.
Players will face a mandatory deposit limit of €5,000 (£428/€476/$540) per week and gaming companies will only be able to offer bonuses of up to SEK 100.
Players will also have to set time limits on how long they can play online casinos and slot machines at licensed gaming companies in Sweden.
"During the current pandemic, we have seen a mix of circumstances that together create greater risks in the gambling sector," said Social Security Minister Ardalan Shekarabi. "These must be countered. With these measures, the government will strengthen Swedish consumer protection."
The government also approved SEK 500,000 in funding to the Public Health Agency for further research into gambling problems during the pandemic. The agency will report its findings to the Ministry of Social Affairs by the end of February 2021.
"We need in-depth knowledge of how gambling problems are affected by the corona pandemic," said Minister of Social Affairs Lena Hallengren. "It is important to counteract gambling addiction in the future."
The decision to introduce the temporary measures was strongly opposed by the licensed gambling companies and industry associations. Shekarabi had previously proposed that the restrictions should also apply to sports betting and trotting, but these were excluded in response to the criticism.
Despite the changes, the online gambling industry body (BOS) has asked the government to scrap the measures, saying the latest changes will hurt the market and drive players to unlicensed providers.
The Swedish gaming authority, Spelinspektionen, has also been critical and warned this week that the rule changes could make them even harder to implement by 2 July.
Meanwhile, executives from a number of licensed gaming companies have signed a petition, organised by BOS, to protest the measures. Betsson, Kindred Group, LeoVegas, NetEnt and William Hill are among those opposed to the restrictions. Earlier this week, executives from nine major Swedish gambling companies and providers presented a number of alternative ways to protect players that they said would be more effective than a limit.
But now that the government has approved the measures, the gambling companies and organizations must start preparing to introduce restrictions from next month.
Fintan Costello, head of affiliate specialist BonusFinder.com, condemned the decision to proceed with the restrictions. Costello argued that the measures will hinder channeled action and put the gambling companies at risk due to the short timeframe for introducing the measures.
"This government decision will only bring gamblers to the black market, which is one click away," Costello explained. "Further bonus restrictions and reliance on deposit limits instead of income controls will make the legal market less attractive to local players.
"Furthermore, giving licensees only two weeks to implement the changes and alter the market will be both a significant and costly challenge for gaming companies."