Italy braces for online gambling explosion

[The Buzz]

2010 promises to be a year of many changes in the online gambling industry on both sides of the Atlantic. One of the most prominent hot spots is Italy, where it is expected that the country will liberalize its gambling market.

From GamingZion:

Now, time has come for Italy to opens its doors to the rest of the world. The Italian regulatory body, called AAMS, is still working on sorting out the details of how offshore online gambling sites will be regulated, but they are coming very close to the end, and everything is expected to launch this year.

The regulation is going to be extremely tight. First off, a flat 20% tax is going to be levied on the gross profits of all offshore operators. Licenses will cost a whopping €360.000, and will automatically expire at the end of June, 2016. Operators who wish to offer online bingo games in Italy will have to pay an extra €50,000.

[casinojack]

YAY! About time!

[Anthony]

Regulation yes - but that is some hefty taxing.

[Shaun O'neill]

As ever this is just about tax and control makes me sick.

Shaun

[eaton2003]

Looking forward to seeing this, but unsure when.

[nitro]

As ever this is just about tax and control makes me sick.

Shaun

Who says that you have to go for this kind of "deals" ? The best option would be ignoring the market after the "legalization" by the entire industry for a while until a "deal" can be struck that is acceptable. You have to play with them.

[Seothug]

i wont believe it until i see it.
i wonder when Google will let us do ppc in Italy.

[Yuval]

So how do say in Italian : Get 100% deposit bonus for playing X casino ! ?

Regards,

Yuval Harari

www.casinos2check.com

[casino2k.com]

This is a hot topic, around since mid 2009.
Italy has already "regulated" (or maybe has increased his monopoly in) sportsbetting, horse racing, poker and bingo.
Now it's time for online casinos....

[webmacho]

Great news, any liberalisation in poker industry is wellcome

[nitro]

This is what you'll get:

"We're from the government and we're here to help. No, REALLY. Please stop laughing, I'm not kidding. OK, it may cost you some money in taxes. OK, A LOT of money but it'll be worth it. We'll keep track of every session you play then send you a sweet little tax bill once a year.We'll need your bank records of course and everyone you contact will need to be in our data base but you'll hardly even notice us. But we'll notice you.Like I said we're here to help."

"I am older than most of you, having been a poker player for over 50 years. I have also been involved with a financial service industry that was once unregulated and is now regulated. My only advice is be careful for what you ask for. If Rep Frank is correct, $42 billion will be taken from poker players over the next 10 years. And what do poker players get?? Only the ability to input money easier. It will not be safer. In fact, if past experiences with government are reflective, it will probably be less safe. I think I like it better unregulated."

It's not about "liberalisation" - it's about control.