General Betting
Welcome to Live View – Take the tour to learn more
Start Tour
There is currently 1 person viewing this thread.
anybody knows something ?
Show More
Betfair is not available in the north. Are you telling us that
southern Cyprus going the same way?
southern Cyprus going the same way?
Cyprus Mail PDF editions
End of the road for online casinos
By Natalie Hami Published on July 7, 2012
Follow the mail on Twitter.
+
-
Text size
Bookmark and Share
Related content
Topic tags
betting, bill, Cyprus, gambling, House, law, Nicolas Papadopoulos, online casinos, parliament
PARLIAMENT yesterday unanimously voted through a controversial bill regulating gaming, which includes a ban on online casinos and exchange betting.
Betting exchange is where players bet among themselves with the mediation of a company, which receives a commission from the transactions. The provision had been removed in committee but was resubmitted and pushed through by a respectable margin.
The new law also regulates legal betting, providing for a tax on the net betting revenue - after winnings are subtracted. In addition betting shops will pay an additional contribution of 3.0 per cent on net revenue, which will be paid to a gaming board to be set up. The board will then transfer the contribution to the Cyprus Sports Federation, which will allocate 1.5 per cent to the Cyprus Football Association, 0.5 per cent to other sports associations, and 1.0 per cent to special programmes dedicated to fight gambling addiction.
The bill exempts gaming company OPAP – which runs the lottery and other games of chance - because the company operates under a bilateral agreement between Greece – its base – and Cyprus.
The bill regulating gaming in general has been languishing at the House as deputies argued over its provisions while the state continued to lose billions in tax revenues from online casinos, which were shooting up on every street corner.
Reportedly some deputies had received threats from the operators of online casinos, and in recent weeks there have been nine arson and other attacks on OPAP outlets islandwide, believed to be connected to its exemption from the bill. When the bill was submitted last year, lawmakers had been handed a letter signed by eight companies offering online casino games, alleging that the bill favoured OPAP.
Only two weeks ago five men were gunned down in Ayia Napa in what are believed to be a gambling-related murders. Deputies welcomed the passage of the law yesterday.
“From this day we are handing over to the prosecuting authorities and the state the tools to combat this phenomenon,” said House Legal Affairs Committee chairman Ionas Nicolaou.
He said that with the connivance of some in law enforcement, Cyprus had become an open casino, and these companies were likely the only ones making money in the current climate.
House President Yiannakis Omirou urged the authorities to act on implementing the new law “to remove this cancer form the bowels of Cypriot society”.
House Finance Committee chairman Nicolas Papadopoulos said however that despite the law, those who want to continue gambling online will simply do so at home.
End of the road for online casinos
By Natalie Hami Published on July 7, 2012
Follow the mail on Twitter.
+
-
Text size
Bookmark and Share
Related content
Topic tags
betting, bill, Cyprus, gambling, House, law, Nicolas Papadopoulos, online casinos, parliament
PARLIAMENT yesterday unanimously voted through a controversial bill regulating gaming, which includes a ban on online casinos and exchange betting.
Betting exchange is where players bet among themselves with the mediation of a company, which receives a commission from the transactions. The provision had been removed in committee but was resubmitted and pushed through by a respectable margin.
The new law also regulates legal betting, providing for a tax on the net betting revenue - after winnings are subtracted. In addition betting shops will pay an additional contribution of 3.0 per cent on net revenue, which will be paid to a gaming board to be set up. The board will then transfer the contribution to the Cyprus Sports Federation, which will allocate 1.5 per cent to the Cyprus Football Association, 0.5 per cent to other sports associations, and 1.0 per cent to special programmes dedicated to fight gambling addiction.
The bill exempts gaming company OPAP – which runs the lottery and other games of chance - because the company operates under a bilateral agreement between Greece – its base – and Cyprus.
The bill regulating gaming in general has been languishing at the House as deputies argued over its provisions while the state continued to lose billions in tax revenues from online casinos, which were shooting up on every street corner.
Reportedly some deputies had received threats from the operators of online casinos, and in recent weeks there have been nine arson and other attacks on OPAP outlets islandwide, believed to be connected to its exemption from the bill. When the bill was submitted last year, lawmakers had been handed a letter signed by eight companies offering online casino games, alleging that the bill favoured OPAP.
Only two weeks ago five men were gunned down in Ayia Napa in what are believed to be a gambling-related murders. Deputies welcomed the passage of the law yesterday.
“From this day we are handing over to the prosecuting authorities and the state the tools to combat this phenomenon,” said House Legal Affairs Committee chairman Ionas Nicolaou.
He said that with the connivance of some in law enforcement, Cyprus had become an open casino, and these companies were likely the only ones making money in the current climate.
House President Yiannakis Omirou urged the authorities to act on implementing the new law “to remove this cancer form the bowels of Cypriot society”.
House Finance Committee chairman Nicolas Papadopoulos said however that despite the law, those who want to continue gambling online will simply do so at home.
Killer for me. Will be spending most of my time in Cyprus as of next year.
Home Featured Cyprus bans online casinos, poker and betting exchanges
Cyprus bans online casinos, poker and betting exchanges
24 hours ago by Stephen Carter 0
Cyprus passed a law yesterday to regulate sports betting but ban online casinos, poker and exchange betting.
The latter comes as a blow for Betfair, that had been pinning its hopes on an 11th-hour reprieve after lawmakers at the Committee stage considered replacing the outright ban with one just on exchanges offering markets on Cypriot football teams.
The betting exchange leader last week classified Cyprus as a “higher risk” territory during its last FY results presentation, the territory along with Germany and Greece accounting for 13% of the company’s core revenue in the 12 months to the end of April 2012.
Upon passage of the law through the Cypriot parliament, House Legal Affairs Committee chairman Ionas Nicolau was quoted by the Cyprus Mail as saying: “From this day we are handing over to the prosecuting authorities and the state the tools to combat this phenomenon.”
House Finance Committee chairman Nicolas Papadopoulos however said the law would not prevent people from gambling at home if they wished.
Greek betting monopoly OPAP, that runs the lottery and other games of chance in Cyprus under an agreement with Greece, has controversially been exempted from the ban. Police were this week forced to protect 168 OPAP shops after nine shops came under attack from arson and gunfire, believed to be connected to disquiet from other gambling operators over OPAP’s exemption.
Sports betting operators licensed by the EU Member State will be subject to a 10% tax on revenue, as opposed to the 3% of turnover previously proposed in the draft bill approved by the country’s Cabinet in March 2011.
They will also pay a further 3% of revenue to the new Gambling Board to be established by the new law. 2% of this will be a sports betting right – with 1.5% paid to the Cyprus Football Association and 0.5% to other associations – with the other 1% funding programmes preventing and dealing with gambling addiction.
While operators’ rights offer online gambling into Member States from jurisdictions within the EEA are enshrined within the freedom of services and establishment directives within Articles 49 and 56 of the EU Treaty, a series of CJEU decisions going against private operators have eroded these rights in recent years.
According to the CJEU, Member States can restrict private operators’ rights to offer gambling services across borders within the EU, often in favour of the incumbent monopoly, as long as their actions are “legitimate and proportionate” and can be consistently justified in terms of providing better protection for players from crime, fraud and addiction.
Belgium and Germany are among the Member States which have recently cited these rulings to justify restrictions on opening their gambling markets. Cyprus officials are sure to do the same.
Cyprus bans online casinos, poker and betting exchanges
24 hours ago by Stephen Carter 0
Cyprus passed a law yesterday to regulate sports betting but ban online casinos, poker and exchange betting.
The latter comes as a blow for Betfair, that had been pinning its hopes on an 11th-hour reprieve after lawmakers at the Committee stage considered replacing the outright ban with one just on exchanges offering markets on Cypriot football teams.
The betting exchange leader last week classified Cyprus as a “higher risk” territory during its last FY results presentation, the territory along with Germany and Greece accounting for 13% of the company’s core revenue in the 12 months to the end of April 2012.
Upon passage of the law through the Cypriot parliament, House Legal Affairs Committee chairman Ionas Nicolau was quoted by the Cyprus Mail as saying: “From this day we are handing over to the prosecuting authorities and the state the tools to combat this phenomenon.”
House Finance Committee chairman Nicolas Papadopoulos however said the law would not prevent people from gambling at home if they wished.
Greek betting monopoly OPAP, that runs the lottery and other games of chance in Cyprus under an agreement with Greece, has controversially been exempted from the ban. Police were this week forced to protect 168 OPAP shops after nine shops came under attack from arson and gunfire, believed to be connected to disquiet from other gambling operators over OPAP’s exemption.
Sports betting operators licensed by the EU Member State will be subject to a 10% tax on revenue, as opposed to the 3% of turnover previously proposed in the draft bill approved by the country’s Cabinet in March 2011.
They will also pay a further 3% of revenue to the new Gambling Board to be established by the new law. 2% of this will be a sports betting right – with 1.5% paid to the Cyprus Football Association and 0.5% to other associations – with the other 1% funding programmes preventing and dealing with gambling addiction.
While operators’ rights offer online gambling into Member States from jurisdictions within the EEA are enshrined within the freedom of services and establishment directives within Articles 49 and 56 of the EU Treaty, a series of CJEU decisions going against private operators have eroded these rights in recent years.
According to the CJEU, Member States can restrict private operators’ rights to offer gambling services across borders within the EU, often in favour of the incumbent monopoly, as long as their actions are “legitimate and proportionate” and can be consistently justified in terms of providing better protection for players from crime, fraud and addiction.
Belgium and Germany are among the Member States which have recently cited these rulings to justify restrictions on opening their gambling markets. Cyprus officials are sure to do the same.
So people who live on the Island will still be able to carry on as normal?
Τhis article is in greek language. I hope that we can find a solution because the law it's not fair
http://www.sigmalive.com/simerini/news/local/505361
http://www.sigmalive.com/simerini/news/local/505361
What does this bit say?:
«Άλλο να έχεις bar και άλλο να πίνεις αλκοόλ στο σπίτι σου», τόνισε στη «Σ» ο Νικόλας Παπαδόπουλος, Βουλευτής ΔΗΚΟ και Πρόεδρος της Κοινοβουλευτικής Επιτροπής Οικονομικών, αναφερόμενος στο ότι ο νέος νόμος απαγορεύει στους χρήστες τόσο του ανταλλακτηρίου όσο και άλλων εταιρειών να στοιχηματίζουν από τα σπίτια τους. Ο κ. Παπαδόπουλος εξέφρασε τον προβληματισμό του για το αν τελικά θα εφαρμοστεί ο συγκεκριμένος νόμος, αφού είπε ότι πρακτικά αν και υπάρχουν τρόποι για να εμποδίζουν τους χρήστες, εντούτοις πάντα θα βρίσκονται τρόποι ώστε να παρακάμπτονται τα συγκεκριμένα εμπόδια.
«Άλλο να έχεις bar και άλλο να πίνεις αλκοόλ στο σπίτι σου», τόνισε στη «Σ» ο Νικόλας Παπαδόπουλος, Βουλευτής ΔΗΚΟ και Πρόεδρος της Κοινοβουλευτικής Επιτροπής Οικονομικών, αναφερόμενος στο ότι ο νέος νόμος απαγορεύει στους χρήστες τόσο του ανταλλακτηρίου όσο και άλλων εταιρειών να στοιχηματίζουν από τα σπίτια τους. Ο κ. Παπαδόπουλος εξέφρασε τον προβληματισμό του για το αν τελικά θα εφαρμοστεί ο συγκεκριμένος νόμος, αφού είπε ότι πρακτικά αν και υπάρχουν τρόποι για να εμποδίζουν τους χρήστες, εντούτοις πάντα θα βρίσκονται τρόποι ώστε να παρακάμπτονται τα συγκεκριμένα εμπόδια.
When has "fair" ever had anything to do with gambling? Another nail in the coffin.
loosely translated prolly someat like "feck off you foreign b@stards"
I believe that paragraph may hold the answer to AdrianMole's question:
So people who live on the Island will still be able to carry on as normal?
So people who live on the Island will still be able to carry on as normal?
When does the ban kick in then? And what are the the chances of Betfair getting it overturned?
When does the ban kick in then?
I'm sure all exchange users in Cyprus would like to know the answer to that one.
It's somewhere between "effective immediately" and "before the end of the year".
That's as far as I've been able to narrow it down so far.
I'm sure all exchange users in Cyprus would like to know the answer to that one.
It's somewhere between "effective immediately" and "before the end of the year".
That's as far as I've been able to narrow it down so far.
Bloody ridiculous. There's betting shops on every street corner out there, but they want to stop you gambling online.
BTW, can you still get Sky over there? I heard the new satellite had a weaker signal.
Am coming over for a few months in a couple of weeks and need to know whether to bring my Sky box or not?
BTW, can you still get Sky over there? I heard the new satellite had a weaker signal.
Am coming over for a few months in a couple of weeks and need to know whether to bring my Sky box or not?
I can't help you with the Sky query I'm afraid; I don't have a television and I avoid all bars which have television screens.
But I'm making enquiries about Sky on behalf of someone else so I'll let you know.
But I'm making enquiries about Sky on behalf of someone else so I'll let you know.
Hi Moods 
What is your situation now ? i know you were pretty settled over there - will you be moving ?
What is your situation now ? i know you were pretty settled over there - will you be moving ?
Part of the EU - how can any country unilaterally ban something which is legal in the rest of the union. Surely they can't do that?
Taken from today's Cyprus Mail:
POLICE YESTERDAY warned betting companies and gamblers that the new gambling bill recently passed by parliament is now in effect and will be implemented without delay.
In a released statement, police highlighted that many provisions in the new legislation provide for penalties of up to five years in jail and/or a €300,000 fine.
The new law makes possession and/or operation of devices for the purposes of running an online casino illegal, while also prohibiting the advertising of illegal gambling.
Criminal responsibility now lies not only with those owning or running gambling joints but also the gamblers, said the police.
“We urge all those involved in illegal gambling to comply immediately with the provisions of the existing legislation. Otherwise, they will suffer the consequences of the law,” said the police statement.
“The police force is determined to speedily enforce the law against those who fail to comply.”
Earlier in the week, police chief Michalis Papageorgiou said the force “expected much more” from the new legislation banning online gambling despite the fact it gave the police “plenty of firepower”.
The controversial legislation, recently voted through parliament, has effectively banned all online gambling in Cyprus while also heavily taxing existing betting shops.
Gambling shop owners have strongly protested against the bill, arguing the law will put them out of business, while providing an unfair advantage to the Greek state-owned betting agency OPAP, which is exempt from all these laws due to a bilateral agreement between Greece and Cyprus.
Many believe the string of recent attacks against OPAP betting shops come as a result of this legislation.
According to international media reports, the UK gambling group Betfair has threatened Cyprus with legal action stating that the legislation passed by the Cypriot parliament contained “serious flaws and, in some areas, is inconsistent with European Union law”.
Parliament unanimously passed the bill regulating gaming on July 6 after months of debate. Apart from banning online casinos, the law also regulates legal betting, providing for a ten per cent tax on the net betting revenue - after winnings are subtracted.
In addition betting shops will pay an additional contribution of 3.0 per cent on net revenue, which will be paid to a gaming board to be set up.
The board will then transfer the contribution to the Cyprus Sports Federation, which will allocate 1.5 per cent to the Cyprus Football Association, 0.5 per cent to other sports associations, and 1.0 per cent to special programmes dedicated to fight gambling addiction
POLICE YESTERDAY warned betting companies and gamblers that the new gambling bill recently passed by parliament is now in effect and will be implemented without delay.
In a released statement, police highlighted that many provisions in the new legislation provide for penalties of up to five years in jail and/or a €300,000 fine.
The new law makes possession and/or operation of devices for the purposes of running an online casino illegal, while also prohibiting the advertising of illegal gambling.
Criminal responsibility now lies not only with those owning or running gambling joints but also the gamblers, said the police.
“We urge all those involved in illegal gambling to comply immediately with the provisions of the existing legislation. Otherwise, they will suffer the consequences of the law,” said the police statement.
“The police force is determined to speedily enforce the law against those who fail to comply.”
Earlier in the week, police chief Michalis Papageorgiou said the force “expected much more” from the new legislation banning online gambling despite the fact it gave the police “plenty of firepower”.
The controversial legislation, recently voted through parliament, has effectively banned all online gambling in Cyprus while also heavily taxing existing betting shops.
Gambling shop owners have strongly protested against the bill, arguing the law will put them out of business, while providing an unfair advantage to the Greek state-owned betting agency OPAP, which is exempt from all these laws due to a bilateral agreement between Greece and Cyprus.
Many believe the string of recent attacks against OPAP betting shops come as a result of this legislation.
According to international media reports, the UK gambling group Betfair has threatened Cyprus with legal action stating that the legislation passed by the Cypriot parliament contained “serious flaws and, in some areas, is inconsistent with European Union law”.
Parliament unanimously passed the bill regulating gaming on July 6 after months of debate. Apart from banning online casinos, the law also regulates legal betting, providing for a ten per cent tax on the net betting revenue - after winnings are subtracted.
In addition betting shops will pay an additional contribution of 3.0 per cent on net revenue, which will be paid to a gaming board to be set up.
The board will then transfer the contribution to the Cyprus Sports Federation, which will allocate 1.5 per cent to the Cyprus Football Association, 0.5 per cent to other sports associations, and 1.0 per cent to special programmes dedicated to fight gambling addiction
Gee Cyprus sounds like a fun place to live.
Don't do things by half do they ?
Don't do things by half do they ?
they say any time now we gona get uk racing dogs and horses with the opab contract so y does the contract only go to obap ... cyprus free market ha ha ha ha ......
I live in green and pleasant England for good reason
Well there has to be some reason I suppose Coach.
Damned though if I can find another.
Damned though if I can find another.
Post Your Reply
Please login to post a reply.
Wonder
Instance ID: 13539