Denmark won’t budge on taxation levels

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danish-flagsEuropean regulation was one of the main trends in the online gambling business over the past year. It’s no surprise then to find that the trend looks as though it will continue apace right into the New Year.

Regulation is something which if done well can be very successful indeed – take Italy as an example. Nonetheless, a number of countries, namely France, have come under heavy criticism for primarily their taxation levels. Denmark are one of the latest countries to decide on regulating online gambling business in their country, and an article on eGaming Review looks at what the legislations may consist of.

It’s already been widely reported that Denmark won’t lower the 41% tax rate on land-based operators to come in line with the 20% that will be paid by online gambling companies, and according to one man, it’s going to stay that way.

Chairman and chief executive of Danske Spil, Hans Christian Madsen, told eGR: “Never in the history of Denmark have we seen taxation lowered.” He also announced the monopoly would be splitting in three different parts ahead of the regulation early next year.

The three distinct divisions will be one focusing on sports betting, poker and casino, one that concentrates on the monopoly market, including lottery, horse racing, and bingo, with the third responsible for their 5,000 video lottery terminals (VLTs).

The high amount of tax may spell the end for land-based operators as they simply are unlikely to be able to compete on a level playing field when there’s a different in tax of over 20%.