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Svenske
Spel
Decides
Not
To
Expand
September
18,
2007
The
Swedish
online
gambling
industry’s
company
Svenske
Spel
has
decided
not
to
apply
for
expansion
and
has
withdrawn
its
online
casino
license
application.
The
company
is a
state
owned
gambling
monopoly,
but
it
says
that
they
are
halting
all
new
development
and
withdrawing
from
consideration.
The
Swedish
government
is
just
one
more
that
has
come
under
fire
from
the
European
Commission
because
it
is
one
of
several
countries
that
is
excluding
other
EU
nations
from
benefiting
from
its
lucrative
gambling
industry.
They
are
not
complying
with
the
EU’s
free
movement
of
trade
and
services
principles,
and
therefore
are
breaking
the
laws
of
the
EU.
EC
Commissioner
Charlie
McCreevy
heard
their
testimony
that
they
are
trying
to
protect
their
players
from
unscrupulous
online
gambling,
but
rejected
the
notion
of
it.
Because
of
this,
the
Swedes
are
most
likely
looking
at a
court
battle.
However,
this
could
take
years,
so
experts
say
that
this
may
be
exactly
what
the
Swedes
want.
Since
they
are
no
longer
planning
on
expanding,
they
could
be
trying
to
make
it
look
like
they
are
protecting
their
countrymen
from
excessive
online
gambling
temptation
and
thereby
addiction.
It
is
anyone’s
guess
where
this
will
go
from
here,
but
in
the
meantime,
the
Swedes
get
to
continue
with
their
monopoly.
Back
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September
2007
Archive.
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