Swedish court rule against media outlets on gambling ad case

A Swedish court has ruled in favour of the country’s regulatory authority Lotteriinspektionen in a case against media outlets regarding online gambling advertising. The court effectively curtailed the media’s ability to generate advertising income from the ads of licensed online gambling companies.

The case started in September 2013 after Lotteriinspektionen issued orders and slapped a fine of SEK45k (US$4,940) on two media outlets, Aftonbladet and Expressen, on account of their publication of links to international gambling sites. The media outlets challenged the order, arguing that the publication of clickable links does not fall under advertising and it is a matter of their freedom of expression.

The Court of Appeal ruling states that the sites’ links to international gambling operators were of a “pronounced commercial nature” and thus ineligible for protection under freedom of expression laws. The Court further ruled that the advertising restrictions detailed in Sweden’s 1994 Gambling Act did not contravene European Union law.

Swedish media outlets enjoyed record revenue from gambling advertisements in 2017, very little of which was spent promoting the (for now) state-run gambling monopoly Svenska Spel. But Lotteriinspektionen has become increasingly bold in warning local media outlets to curb their dealings with international gambling operators.

Lotteriinspektionen director general Camilla Rosenberg said the regulator assumes that “anyone who violates the promotion ban by linking to or promoting foreign gaming now ends with [the Court of Appeal ruling].”

In June, Swedish legislators approved a new Gambling Act that will take effect on 1 January 2019. The new rules will for the first time allow international operators to apply for Swedish online licenses and will further restrict advertising with operators not holding a local license.

Source: calvinayre.com