Recently two new decisions concerning illegal online gambling games marketing in Finland were given.
The first decision concerns individual social media influencer. The District Court of Itä-Uusimaa sentenced a 27-year-old man to probation in early June for illegal marketing in violation of the Finnish Lotteries Act (1047/2001). Additionally, the man was ordered to forfeit over 51,000 euros obtained as a result of the crime. The person had been promoting gambling games that weren’t organized by Veikkaus, which is prohibited by the Finnish Lotteries Act. The marketing took place on websites and social media platforms such as YouTube, Snapchat, and Twitch between 2020 and 2021 and was found to be directed towards Mainland Finland.
In the other decision, concerning marketing of a gaming company rather than an individual, the National Police Board of Finland prohibited a certain company from marketing gambling games in Finland in violation of the Lotteries Act, and imposed a penalty payment of 2.4 million euros. The company's marketing activities had been ongoing for a long time and were carried out on multiple platforms. Despite the police’s warnings, the company didn’t cease its prohibited marketing, but has taken measures to reduce it. If the company continues its marketing despite the prohibition, the Police Board must take action to enforce the penalty. A payment block was also imposed on the company.
Second decision shows in action new payment blocking measures that were implemented in Finland at the beginning of 2023 to address illegal marketing in violation of the Lottery Act. These payment blocks restrict outgoing financial transactions from players to those gambling companies that have received prohibition decisions from the Police Board regarding illegal marketing. The objective of the payment blocking measures is to restrict the accessibility and availability of gambling services from outside mainland Finland, which are not regulated by the Lottery Act.
If you are willing to know more about Finnish marketing rules or payment blocking measures in Finland, contact Finnish Procurement Lawyers Attorneys. We are ready to help our clients with questions concerning current Finnish gambling industry rules. If, on the other hand, you suspect that unjustified administrative actions have been taken against you, administrative appeals are also our area of specialization.