The new Austrian Gambling Act will reportedly introduce multiple licences for online gambling and abolish the current monopoly. According to local media, representatives of the governing parties have agreed on this during negotiations, based on sources close to the talks.
The reform places strong emphasis on fair competition and player protection. Measures such as IP and payment blocking are intended to prevent access to unlicensed platforms and direct players towards regulated offerings. By allowing more providers, authorities aim to increase the channelisation rate.
The CEO of Casinos Austria, Erwin van Lambaart, has spoken out against liberalising the monopoly. Casinos Austria, through its stake in ÖLG Holding, partly operates the only online platform Win2Day.
Lambaart, unsurprisingly given his position, argues that opening the market could pose risks to player protection. He also noted that Casinos Austria is the second-largest taxpayer in the country, contributing around €900m ($1.03bn).
Under the current negotiations, there is still expected to be only one concession for lotteries as multiple providers are considered economically unviable.
The total number of land-based casino licences remains uncertain. Only a limited number of locations are likely to be commercially viable, although gambling venues support tourism in certain regions.
Meanwhile, the original timeline for the reform cannot be met. It was initially expected to be presented by the end of March and passed before the parliamentary summer break.
Instead, the draft must first be submitted to Brussels and will be subject to a three-month waiting period before it can be adopted. The delay is considered acceptable if it results in better regulations.
The draft regulations propose eliminating Video Lottery Terminals in Austria, affecting Casinos Austria’s WinWin outlets, which operate about 850 machines across 20 locations and employ around 200 people
