The gaming regulator for Denmark has reportedly announced that its recent move to block local punters from accessing 16 unlicensed iGaming sites has been upheld by a local district court.

According to a report from iGamingBusiness.com, the Spillemyndigheden authority revealed that this is the sixth time it has gone to court in order to protect the local population from illicit gaming domains since 2012 with the nation’s total number of sites banned in this way now standing at 74.

Direct disregard:

According to the source, the regulator had sought judicial permission to block access to the offending unlicensed domains after only one of 17 earlier contacted had observed an official warning to immediately cease offering their services to aficionados in Denmark. The news source detailed that seven of the transgressing sites had featured online casino games while a further two had offered real-money sportsbetting services.

Normal necessity:

Morten Niels Jakobsen, Director for the Spillemyndigheden, reportedly used an official press release to explain that his body is often required to go to the courts in order to get local Internet service providers to block access to such unlicensed sites. Once a favorable decision has been obtained, he moreover pronounced that the proscribed domains are not able to be accessed by anyone utilizing ‘a Danish IP address’.

Reportedly read a statement from Jakobsen…

“We work to protect players against illegal gambling and we also need to ensure that the operators who are licenced to offer gambling in Denmark can run their businesses under orderly conditions. That is why it is very important for us to clamp down on gambling offered without a licence.”

Juvenile defence:

It was additionally reported that seven of the newly-banned domains had offered eSports skin betting, which is an area the Spillemyndigheden begun looking at in 2018 amid concerns that such services were disproportionately being targeted towards minors.

Spillemyndigheden’s press release reportedly read…

“We are particularly concerned with skin betting as this type of game especially attracts young people under 18, who, via video games, may be exposed to elements from gambling.”