KSA hits MGA-licensed Gammix with €4.4m fine in latest clampdown

The Netherlands Gaming Authority (KSA) has instructed Gammix, a Malta-based and MGA-licensed operator, to pay a penalty of €4.4m for non-compliance with a previous order to cease offering services in the Netherlands.

Last June, the KSA ordered Gammix to cease its gambling activities in the country due to the absence of a local licence.

The KSA imposed a fine of up to €1.4m per week for every week that the operator continued to operate, up to a maximum of €4.4m.

However, after several re-checks between August 2022 and November 2022, the KSA found that various websites operated by Gammix were still accessible to Dutch players.

As Gammix has not yet paid the penalty, the KSA has now decided to collect the maximum amount.

KSA chair René Jansen commented: “We have to press ahead when combating illegal supply. An order subject to periodic penalty payments is often effective within administrative law to stop a violation. Not in this case, because the violation has not completely ceased, so we take the next step.

“We do not want an order subject to periodic penalty payments to be ignored, because that would make the remedy less effective. Anyone who violates and continues to continue must pay. It’s that simple,” he said.

Gammix disagrees

Gammix disagreed with the decision, although the company’s objection was rejected by the regulator.

In a response sent to the KSA’s order, Gammix claimed to have taken several technical measures to ensure that it does not target players in the Netherlands, including blocking Dutch log-ins and preventing the creation of accounts with a Dutch IP address.

It also argued that the use of a dot com domain name or the English language is not indicative of any connection to the Netherlands and that the penalty imposed is arbitrary, disproportionate, and discriminatory.

The KSA said Gammix can still challenge the decision.

Earlier in March, the KSA imposed imposed fines totalling more than €26m on five different operators for allowing consumers in the Netherlands to gamble online with their services despite not being licensed in the country.

Three of the affected operators, Videoslots, N1 Interactive, and PressEnter Group, have already announced that they will challenge the KSA’s decision.