SWEDEN

The Swedish gambling market has undergone a series of changes in recent years, from bonuses and taxation to stricter requirements for gambling companies. Now new proposals from the government will further tighten the gaming industry - but this time it concerns the software used by the gaming companies.

In the new bill "a strengthened gambling regulation" there is a proposal to introduce a permit for gambling software in the Swedish Gambling Act. If this proposal goes through, the bill will come into force as of July 1, 2023. But by March at the latest, all actors affected by the new rules must submit their applications.

The Swedish gaming market is growing despite overall restrictions

In recent years, the Swedish gambling market has undergone major changes. For example, in 2019 Sweden established a gambling law which meant that all gambling companies offering games for money had to apply for a Swedish gambling license. This change meant, among other things, that gambling companies were forced to change their bonus rules, tighten the requirements around responsible gambling and, not least, pay tax in Sweden.

But despite a significant amount of restrictions and changes for the Swedish gambling market, it has continued to have stable growth. For example, it can be seen on comparison sites such as  https://baraslots.com/ that there are still many established players in Sweden. According to the Swedish Gaming Authority , turnover for gambling companies with a Swedish license increased by 6% to SEK 6.5 billion in the first quarter of 2022.

The latest figures from the Swedish gambling market also show that there are currently 432 license holders in the market, of which 66 are licensed for commercial online gambling. Some of these also hold a license for commercial betting.

New bill – a strengthened gaming regulation for gaming software

In the new bill " a strengthened gambling regulation ", the government plans to introduce a requirement for a license for gambling software in the Swedish Gambling Act. The amendment to the law aims to discourage illegal gambling and make it impossible for unlicensed gambling operators to do business with suppliers who either install or modify gambling software for Swedish gambling suppliers and operators licensed in Sweden.

Although this proposal concerns the gaming software, something that the Swedish operators usually buy in from external companies, the technical requirements for the game lie with consumers and with the gaming company that provides the games.

Why does the government want to tighten gambling regulations around gambling software?

Basically, the government wishes to tighten the gambling regulation around gambling software to further exclude unlicensed games from the Swedish gambling market. By putting the ultimate responsibility on the gaming company that provides the games to check that its software supplier complies with these rules, the manufacturers will get more pressure from the gaming companies.

If this proposal goes through, illegal gaming operators will basically be shut out of the gaming industry as it will be more difficult to cooperate with the major gaming software manufacturers.

What do the enhanced requirements for gaming software mean?

The new bill contains a series of requirements that businesses in the gaming industry must comply with. These requirements apply, among other things, to:

• All companies that either provide, manufacture, install or modify game software used for online games must have permission for it in accordance with the Swedish Gaming Act.
• The company that provides game software may not sell its software to a company that lacks the Swedish game license.
• Swedish gambling companies must ensure that a person providing the gambling software has all the necessary permits.

The game software proposal has not yet passed

The government's new proposal is currently in a bill and the Riksdag has not yet made a decision. However, the Swedish Gaming Authority is very keen to have the changes come into effect as soon as possible. Among other things, the authority states that they - despite the fact that the proposal has not yet passed - are working on developing a document to require actors to apply for a permit according to the bill.

If the changes to the law are adopted in the Riksdag, new regulations on licenses for gaming programs will come into force as early as July 1, 2023.