Do you know what an online gambling license is? In this text, we at Egaming Curaçao will explain what it is in order to clarify and elucidate its importance. In addition, we will list the top 3 reasons for you to understand why you should have a valid online gambling license on your website.
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What is an online gambling license?
The online gambling license is a certificate issued by a regulatory body, such as the United Kingdom, for example, which guarantees that the gambling site is reliable. In order to be licensed, the bookmaker is required to follow a series of rules and meet the requirements of the regulator in question.
To find out if a betting site is licensed the player must look for the seal and / or game license number. They are usually displayed at the bottom of betting sites.
The gaming license guarantees to the player, among other things:
- that the betting site is legal in at least one jurisdiction
- that the gaming environment is safe and fair for all users
- that gaming practices in that environment are safe, honest and reliable
Regulatory bodies are common in all areas. Products without certification can be of low quality, not respecting laws, not being safe. The same is true with unlicensed sites.
The main difference in this case is that there are countries with their own regulatory bodies, others that accept foreign licenses and those that do not allow bets.
This does not mean that the bookmakers’ websites that operate in countries without dedicated agencies are illegal or do not have an online gambling license. Although the player cannot place bets on bookmakers from unregulated countries, he can bet on licensed bookmakers from other jurisdictions.
This is because, although betting activities are prohibited in unregulated countries, in general, the law is unclear as to the case of licensed online bookmakers in other jurisdictions where gambling is permitted. What happens in practice is that, when placing an online bet, it is as if the player had traveled to the country that issued the license for a given website and placed their bet there. Which means that the player is not betting on an unlicensed country but where the website itself is licensed, even though the player may be physically elsewhere.
Yes, it may seem confusing, but this is the process. It is worth mentioning that betting on licensed betting sites is neither a crime nor illegal both on the part of the player and the betting site.
Such confusion is the result of unclear and outdated laws. So much so that there are already in several countries where gambling is not allowed, movements to change the scenario and allow online betting activity. When this becomes a reality, countries will also start issuing licenses, and sites that want to operate in said countries will have to adapt.
It is worth mentioning that in many of these unlicensed countries that occupy a “gray zone”, the market is large in the online betting segment. The Brazilian market, for example, is one of the largest in online betting, that is, the Brazilians already have the habit of betting online. While there is no legalization of activity in the country, whoever is profiting or collecting the house tax are the countries where the license is issued. The same happens in Canada and Australia, among others.
Regarding the gambling licenses of betting sites and competent bodies it is important to know that there are different types of licensing and entities for this purpose. Check out more about Betting Sites in the post Opening Bookmaker: 4 things you need to know to open yours.
Next, check out the top 3 reasons to have an online gaming license on your website.
1. Without a license for online games, there is no confidence and security for the player
The first reason why it is important to have an online gambling license on your betting site is credibility. Without trust and security for the customer, no one thrives in the world.
The online betting market is no different. A website can hardly thrive and succeed without a gaming license, since the user, the gambler, will not have confidence or feel secure.
The issue of trust and security becomes even more important, as it involves money and personal data. It does not help the site to have amazing and juicy promotions and benefits if it does not have a license that guarantees a safe environment.
When there is an online gambling license, it has an agency that issued it and supervises the activities of the site. Such a site can only function and continue showing the license seal if it is within the parameters stipulated by that entity. Just like a restaurant must follow the rules from Food and Health Agencies or a doctor must be associated with a medical council.
The reflection remains: who goes to a restaurant to eat if it does not follow hygiene rules? Who undergoes surgery with an unlicensed doctor? The same has to be true for betting sites.
It is not uncommon for players to have problems with bookmakers without an online gambling license, even resulting in financial loss. When this happens and the site is not licensed, the person cannot do anything, has no way or to whom to complain.
Among specialists and frequent players the first recommendation for choosing a betting site is this: Choose a house with an online gambling license.
For all of the above, this is the first and foremost reason why the betting site has a gaming license.
2. Payment methods and gambling license
The payment method, in other words, the way the user can make his deposit is a great differential. When choosing your website the bettor takes this factor into account. And to be able to associate with the main existing payment methods the bookmaker will need an online gambling license.
It is not just gamblers who care about the gambling license of gambling sites. Financial institutions, credit card operators, including virtual wallets, also attach extreme importance to this factor.
Financial institutions and the like are even more concerned with fraud, data leaks and customer protection than players. And for them it is essential to have a gaming license, that is, a regulatory body behind it.
Thus, the institutions are not in charge of inspection, and the certificate guarantees everything mentioned above: safe environment, fair play, among others. In addition, many of the entities that issue gaming licenses, if not all, require that the site have a secure and encrypted system so that there is no leakage or diversion of information.
The logic is practically the same as that used by players: greater confidence and security. Without being licensed, the betting site will not be able to offer most of the main payment methods.
Not offering the most important payment methods, the most used credit card flags or virtual wallets, the betting site will lose many users. Therefore, it is essential to have many ways to receive deposits and for that it is necessary to have an online gambling license.
Bearing in mind that some options for depositing on gambling sites without a game license may be unsafe. They can even be a way of deceiving or scamming the user.
Now that the importance of having a certified and licensed betting site has become clear both to attract players and to the main and most used payment methods, we have reached our last point in this text.
3. Unlicensed gambling betting sites are illegal
Let’s put it bluntly: Unlicensed gambling sites are illegal. Yes, there may be bookmakers operating without being licensed, in this case, such bookmakers operate clandestinely, in a prohibited manner and can be closed at any time. They are committing a punishable crime.
Even so, some bookmakers manage to maintain their activities illegally. But in this way the player has no guarantee as to their security, the security of their money, their data or whether the house will honor the winnings and make the due payment. Not only the user, but any person or company is not sure about the suitability of the site.
What happens is that when someone joins a website without an online gambling license, the player is not protected by the law for any purpose. Fraudulent games can occur, their personal data can be used in improper ways or leaked, among other problems.
Not to mention the money in the player’s wallet, which can often not even be used as a credit for a particular bookmaker. Or the player may have major problems when withdrawing and never see the color of his money again.
Conclusion
In this article we have shown the main reasons for having an online gambling license on betting sites. Without being licensed the bookmaker:
- You won’t have the confidence of gamblers
- Will not offer the payment methods most used by users of betting sites
- It will be illegal, clandestine, and may suffer sanctions and punishments, since it will be operating in a criminal manner.
In summary, without an online gambling license the betting site is not successful. In a segment with such competition, being licensed certainly makes a difference.
After all, how can a bookmaker be successful without being reliable and provide security for its customers?
How to be successful without providing the payment methods preferred by the target audience?
How to thrive as a clandestine or illegal bookmaker?
The answer to all these questions is the same and only and points to a single possible path: the online gambling license is essential for a bookmaker.
