Germany

[DE] Gambling Advertising Ban

IRIS 2007-1:1/7

Nicola Weißenborn

Institute of European Media Law (EMR), Saarbrücken/Brussels

At their conference in Bad Pyrmont from 18 to 20 October 2006, the Minister-Presidents of the Länder agreed to continue the state betting monopoly.

As the current Chair of the Conference of Minister-Presidents, Lower Saxony is responsible, along with the Länder of Bavaria, Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, for organising a hearing on the draft Staatsvertrag zum Glücksspielwesen (Inter-State Gambling Agreement). One of the main amendments is the ban on advertising for public gambling services on television, via the Internet and by telephone. An exemption to the ban on TV advertising may apply to events which are traditionally televised and where prominence is given to the charitable use of the net proceeds. This will apply to Lotto draws and lotteries such as " Aktion Mensch " or " Die Goldende Eins ".

The new Agreement is expected to enter into force in 2008 and remain valid for four years.

Previously, the Verband Privater Rundfunk und Telemedien (Association of private broadcasters and telemedia - VPRT e.V.), in partnership with the Arbeitskreis Wetten (betting working group), had presented the results of a study on the licensing of sports betting in Berlin on 12 October 2006. It had also urged the Federal Government and the Länder to reconsider the draft Agreement and to revise substantial parts of it. The study concludes that a licensing system would only have positive benefits for the Federal Government, the Länder and for businesses.