The EC has finally responded to the Italian Economy Ministry’s submission of the draft online gambling law. Disapproval or doubts have been expressed regarding three key areas: the cost of license, the requirement for operators to connect their systems to the government central database, and the requirement for operators to have reached a certain level of betting turnover in the past to be eligible to request a license.

The cost of entry totals to €300,000 and it is criticized for being unrelated to the actual cost of providing authorization.

The requirement for operators to connect their systems to the government central database is also criticized for the fact that the technical systems are non-standard and the required development is really expensive. The Commission asks the Italian authorities to “allow the use of alternative systems that are less onerous but still allow for an efficient and adequate control on the part of the State Monopoly” and avoid the present system’s “excessive complexity”.

What concerns the third point the EU wants no limits on the number of operators allowed to request on-line licenses in the territory.

In Commission’s opinion, the authorities must ensure that operator’s website won’t be blocked by Italian ISPs once a company has received the license.