Kindred Group subsidiary Trannel and the Norwegian Lottery Authority have agreed a compromise that will see Kindred brands such as Unibet continue to serve Norwegian customers on a more restricted basis.
Kindred will continue to serve its existing customers in Norway but will not accept new players or conduct any marketing aimed at players in the country. In return, the regulator has agreed to “pause” the NOK1.2m daily fine that it had planned to impose for every day that Kindred continued to operate in the market.
The Lottery Authority said that it paused the fine after Kindred agreed to abide by Norwegian law, while Kindred reiterated its legal position that it is fully legal for Norwegian residents to access and use gambling services licensed in the EU/EEA.
“The penalty can still be quickly activated if they do not meet the conditions we have given in the decision,” said Henrik Nordal, director of the Norwegian Lottery Authority. “Trannel still offers illegal gambling in Norway, but states that they are working to introduce changes in accordance with the Norwegian Lottery Authority’s decision with a suspension order from 5 April 2019.”
Kindred responded to the statement with its own press release stating that it disagrees with the regulator’s statement and “wishes to clarify that the Group maintains its legal position provided for in the ongoing appeal of the order referred to in the press release. Kindred will continue to passively accept customers residing in Norway.”
“Kindred strongly believes that a locally licensed gambling market where responsible operators can operate under the supervision of competent authorities is the best solution for local societies, for players, and for operators,” the company added.
“Similar to what Kindred previously did in the Netherlands, Kindred has, as a sign of good faith, pro-actively decided to make changes to its international offer. Kindred are doing these changes as the company seek a constructive and transparent dialogue with Norwegian authorities and Norwegian policy stakeholders.”
Shares in Kindred Group plc. (STO:KIND-SDB) were trading 2.89 per cent higher at SEK88.36 per share in Stockholm Monday morning.