France and Italy potential for online gambling information agreement

Italy's online gaming regulator AAMS and France's eGaming regulatory authority ARJEL are discussing a potential cooperation in the form of a formal information sharing agreement with regards to online gambling.

Apparently the two organizations have been working closely since June of last year, when France introduced its online gambling licensing regulations, and could reach a draft agreement as early as June this year.

A senior member of AAMS who asked to remain anonymous has stated that: “We started discussions as soon as it was established. We have a long history of meetings with them and a very good understanding of each other’s markets. We have been collaborating a lot since then so it is only natural that we should want to formalize this relationship."

He further added about the two authorities: “We have similar business models and share several licenses. We already discuss areas such as collusion, integrity, player protection and recently got together to discuss Black Friday and to debate what the right approach was.”

Italy is one of the first European countries to take notice of the emerging online gaming market and legislate accordingly to ensure its residents are protected. Being the largest eGaming market in Europe propelled it to issue licenses for all forms of online gaming.

There is a provision in Italian law for pooling liquidity for some monthly horse racing competitions held in France and any agreement between AAMS and ARJEL could see the two countries edging towards shared liquidity on some gambling products.