Norway regulator to probe Norsk Tipping over possible self-exclusion failures
The case is detailed in a letter seen by Norway press agency NTB. The letter confirms Norsk Tipping will be investigated over the issue, which may have impacted one or more players.
In the letter, Lotteritilsynet notes that Norsk Tipping made the regulator aware of the issue in June. Based on this, Lotteritilsynet concluded there is grounds for an inspection to see if the incident involves a breach of regulations.
Anya Markhus, a senior advisor at Lotteritilsynet, also confirmed the case in a statement to NTB. Markhus said it relates to players not being able to lock themselves out of the app.
What rules may have broken?
The potential breach relates to section nine of the Norway Gambling Act under which licensees are required to allow players to either block themselves or take a break from gambling.
“Providers of gambling that are subject to requirements for registered gambling must give players the opportunity to lock themselves out or take a time-limited break from gambling,” the Act states. “The player cannot end a break until the selected break has expired. The player cannot lift a ban until at least one year has passed.”
Markhus said Lotteritilsynet will now look more closely at the error to establish whether it warrants punishment.
“The case is now in an initial phase,” Markhus said. “Norsk Tipping reported the discrepancy to us. We will now carry out further investigations to find out whether there has been a breach of the law. We cannot comment further on the matter until we know what has happened.”
Norsk Tipping maintains error has been fixed
Norsk Tipping also responded, with communications advisor Anne Marit Sletten saying to NTB the issue has been fixed. Sletten also said the operator welcomes further investigation over the case.
“This is a case that dates back some time and the error has been corrected,” Sletten said. “Norsk Tipping itself notified Lotteritilsynet about the case. We’re happy for the opportunity to shed light on it as best as possible.”
Norsk Tipping has been requested to send information and documentation in connection to the case. This includes a detailed description of the error, as well as what measures have been taken to correct the issue.
The operator must also set out how many customers were able to lock themselves out of the app in a certain time frame. This covers the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024 – just after the issue was discovered.
Norsk Tipping already in hot water
The latest case comes with Norsk Tipping already facing a penalty. This separate case relates to Norsk Tipping mistakenly paying out a jackpot prize that was too high, with Lotteritilsynet having issued a NOK4.5m (£319,073/€381,569/$417,231 penalty.
KongKasino, an online casino owned by Norsk Tipping, paid a jackpot that far exceeded the maximum permitted by Norway’s Money Gambling Act. The jackpot payout was NOK25m, although KongKasino can only award a jackpot prize of NOK5m.
Norsk Tipping said the prize was paid in error due to a technical issue that it was not previously aware of.
The operator was given three weeks from the ruling date (17 September) to appeal the decision. However, this has now been extended to a deadline of 18 October.