Sleswig-Holsteen is one of the 16 federal states of Germany, the northernmost of the country and the only one with a land border with Denmark. Its capital is Kiel.
Last week, the state announced that it had issued licenses to various operators, including Bluebet, Tipico, Skill on Net, and Austrian casino Cashpoint, to offer online casino games in its jurisdiction.
All the new licensed operators are required to comply with player protection regulations and anti-money laundering laws, as stated by Schleswig-Holstein’s Ministry of the Interior.
While the federal gaming regulator, the Gemeinsamen Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), issues licenses for online slots and poker in Germany, each of the country’s 16 states retains the authority to grant licenses for online casino games.
“By allowing an attractive online offer, we want to prevent players from taking advantage of illegal offers if they want to play the games they know from casinos online, for example, and thus strengthen legal gambling.” Sabine Sütterlin-WaackInterior minister
Germany’s gaming industry generally faces significant challenges from a thriving black market. According to the GGl, the black market contributed 4% of the sector’s total GGR in 2023. However, industry stakeholders contend that this figure underestimates the scope of the online black market. The Deutsche Online Casinoverbrand (DOCV), a local trade body in Germany, placed the accurate figures to 20% of the country’s GGR.
The significant presence of the illegal gambling market in Germany has been attributed to regulatory delays and restrictive advertising policies for licensed operators.
In June, GGL launched a study to investigate the effects of TV and online gambling ads on problem gambling behavior. According to the authority, the comprehensive inquiry titled 'Gambling advertising on television and the Internet in the tension between channeling and addiction prevention' will also examine the impact of 'advertising report' on all individuals, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable groups like minors.
Additionally, topics like television commercials, social media ads, and targeted promotional strategies like bonuses and other incentives used to attract new players will be brought under the purview of the research.
The study was led by the research firm Eye Square. Subcontractors Covered Different Topics,these include Bilendi, a Cologne-based market research company, and Dynata, a Hamburg-based data software provider, who will conduct an empirical study and analyze the effectiveness of gambling advertisements.
