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EFTA Backs UK Betting Company

June 1, 2007

UK betting company Ladbrokes, has decided to take on the country of Norway, who’s government has blocked the betting site from operating in the Country. The decision to allow access to Ladbrokes will be determined in an Oslo court.

However, the good new for the betting company is that they have received the support of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) which could strongly sway the outcome in their favor.

Ladbrokes believes that the decision to block them from the Norwegian market was in breach of European Union Laws that in fact support the growth of competition. The EFTA ruled that the Norwegian government has infringed upon the freedom to provide services when they entirely prevented private operator’s access to the market. “A system based on an exclusive right... completely denies private operators access to the respective market and thus encroaches upon the freedom to provide services and the right of establishment,” declared the EFTA court during its ruling.

The Norwegian betting market currently encompasses a monopoly of only two entities, Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto. The current belief is that by denying outside company’s access to the market, they have a much stronger hold on preventing gambling corruption and gambling addiction.

Ladbrokes is one of the world’s leading sportsbetting companies and offers their services in a number of different languages to accommodate players the world over. Besides up to date sports betting, Ladbrokes also offers its customers online casino games, poker, bingo and skill games.