De Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Netherlands gaming regulator, is going after 15 affiliate websites that it accused of advertising illegal online games to Dutch citizens.
KSA conducted 22 investigations and identified 15 websites that violated the Dutch Gambling Act. Without naming the websites, KSA said that 13 of them could be subject to penalty if they don’t heed the KSA warning. Some have been issued cease and desist orders.
Some of the websites immediately ceased the illegal advertising, others switched over to only advertise for licensed operators, said KSA. The regulator said it could issue financial penalties.
KSA declared, “Offering games of chance without a license is prohibited; the same applies to advertising games of chance that are not licensed.” It added, “With affiliate marketing, sites receive money when they click through to the online game of chance and the KSA periodically conducts research into these advertisers.”
In a related development, the international online bingo website Tombola has become the first operator to require that its affiliates complete a mandatory compliance check before operating with the company—particularly ones serving the Netherlands market.
Tombola is now requiring all Dutch-facing affiliates to undergo a compliance check with XY Legal Solutions BV.
Tombola’s Netherlands Country Manager Marc Smit commented, “We do indeed set the KVA seal of approval as a condition for starting an affiliate program at Tombola. We believe that an affiliate partner should be tested.”
