EU Court of Justice acknowledged Online Gambling Guidelines

According to a report, the CJEU or the European Union Court of Justice recently rejected a petition introduced by the Belgian government that had been seeking an annulment for the online gambling guidelines stipulated by the European Commission. As reported earlier, the government of Belgium had drawn out a petition urging the CJEU to ignore the European Commission guidelines for online gambling that were targeted towards introducing better protection for the consumers.

However, turning down Belgium’s request for the withdrawal of the petition, the CJEU declared that there was nothing wrong with the petition and that it simply established both practical and feasible guidelines for protecting the interests of online gamblers in the member states of the European Union.

In the wake of a comprehensive analysis of the petition, the CJEU rejected the arguments made by the government of Belgium about the European Union’s interference with its member states’ sovereignty and powers to control the individual gambling markets of their own accord.

The EU Court of Justice announced its judgment by saying that the general court has concluded that the Belgian Government’s recommendation does not hold any binding legal implications and therefore cannot be categorized as an act that can be challenged.

Following the ruling, the EGBA or the European Gaming and Betting Association expressed its gratitude for the EU Court of Justice for supporting the European Commission’s aim of promoting better protection for online gamblers in the member states. Although it might not have any legal implication as such, the European Gaming and Betting Association has revealed its intentions of offering their complete support to the EC for implementing their online gambling guidelines.

The EGBA has made this decision based on its belief that the online gambling guidelines set by the European Commission will not only help the individual member states to give utmost priority to ensuring the welfare of its online gambling consumers but also ensure the establishment and development of a more vibrant and consumer-friendly environment in the member states.

In addition to this, the EGBA also stated that the guidelines stipulated by the EC are also essentially aligned with the Responsible Remote Gambling Measures agreement made at the CEN or European Committee for Standardization Workshop that the former abides by. Maarten Haijer, the Secretary-General of EGBA remarked that they would now look forward to the Commission to assessing the execution of the guidelines by the member states.