In the wake of comments from ATG's CEO Hasse Lord Skarplöth - which called for Sweden to follow Britain's "courageous" tax hike - numerous operators have leapt to oppose the idea, formally signing a now-submitted petition.
Indeed, Sweden's industry association for online gambling - BOS - has announced that a formal petition letter, signed by 13 local operators and the BOS itself, has now been submitted to government to formally oppose any tax raises in the nation. More specifically, ATG - a horseracing organisation - has proposed that taxes should be raised on the general industry in favour of a horseracing tax reduction.
Unsurprisingly, this proposal has been poorly received by the general members of the broader Swedish industry, with the signatories of this proposal arguing that the given rate of tax has been set relative to, and in consideration of, the number of players that choose to gamble via the regulated market. Arguments that raising that rate of tax on operators could lead to pushing players towards the black market - where they will be left unprotected - have quickly risen to the fore.
Speaking directly on the matter, BOS Secretary General Gustaf Hoffstedt, said: "Betting on horses has a channeling rate of between 98% - 99%. According to the most optimistic assessments, online casinos have a channeling rate of between 72% -82%. The higher the tax, the greater the risk that the consumer will choose unlicensed gambling, where neither gambling tax nor consumer protection exists.
"To then lower the gaming tax for horse betting, which already has a very strong channel, and raise it for online casinos that have a very weak channeling would be completely incomprehensible. At least for those who put consumer protection first."
This latest update falls in the wake of additional proposed AML-related changes to Sweden's Gambling Act last month, which were suggested by the nation's regulator to further enhance the security of the market. Also last month the Swedish Gambling Authority, Spelinspektionen, announced a Q3 turnover figure of SEK 6.7bn ($720m) in the nation's market.
During Q3 of this year, ATG itself reported a 5% dip in NGR following previously implemented tax rises in Sweden
