Norway’s Path Forward: A Better Approach to Gambling Regulation
12.03.2025
Norway stands at a cross-roads in its online gambling regulation. While the state monopoly system was originally intended to protect consumers, Norway’s lagging behind its European and Nordic counterparts whose alternative regulatory approaches are delivering superior results in both consumer protection and economic benefits.
As the online world reshapes how we all consume entertainment, Norway’s legacy online gambling framework faces significant challenges. The monopoly model, operated by the state-owned Norsk Tipping, is being outperformed by regulatory approaches elsewhere.
According to H2 Gambling Capital, half of Norway’s online gambling has already migrated to international websites, leaving it as one of the European countries with the highest share of its gambling taking place offshore. This highlights the need for Norway to take an alternative approach to gambling regulation that maintains core consumer safety principles.
Recent events have shown that even well-intentioned monopolies face challenges in the online environment. The gambling authority recently fined Norsk Tipping up to 36 million NOK (€3 million) for consumer protection failures, showing that a state monopoly provides no inherent guarantee of superior consumer protection over well-regulated private companies.
The main challenge of the monopoly system is that it inherently limits the options available to gamblers. In the online world, Norwegian players are voting with their clicks, migrating to international websites that offer more competitive betting odds, better experiences, and diverse betting options. But when they do so, they’re losing the legal protections and safety measures guaranteed under Norwegian law.
Fortunately, Norway’s neighbours have already charted a better path forward to deal with those challenges. Denmark and Sweden successfully transitioned from state gambling monopolies to multi-licensing systems that offer more consumer choice because they allow several operators to offer online gambling, while ensuring all operators follow the same strict rules.
Their approach wasn’t about encouraging more gambling, but rather bringing offshore gambling activity into a carefully regulated framework. The result? In Denmark, the shift to a multi-licensing system dramatically reduced gambling on international websites, leading to increased tax revenue and better protection for players. Sweden experienced similar benefits, and Norway could do the same.
Multi-licensing is the better alternative to the current monopoly system, offering a pragmatic solution by acknowledging that many Norwegians seek alternatives to Norsk Tipping and already gamble on international sites. It’s not about expanding gambling, but rather establishing proper oversight for the gambling that Norwegians are already engaging in.
This approach wouldn’t threaten Norsk Tipping’s operations or its valuable social contributions. As Denmark and Sweden have shown, former monopoly companies can not only survive but thrive under a multi-licensing framework for online gambling. And offline, Norsk Tipping’s land-based gambling monopoly can remain unchanged, while the online gambling market opens to competition.
Contrary to potential concerns, experiences in Denmark and Sweden show no substantial increases in problem gambling following multi-licensing. Instead, multi-licensing strengthened consumer protection in both countries by bringing international operators under local regulatory oversight and mandating all market operators – not just the former state monopoly company – to implement strict safety measures, including national self-exclusion schemes to protect vulnerable gamblers. Norway could do the same.
As Finland – the last comprehensive gambling monopoly in the EU – is already in the process of moving towards multi-licensing, Norway risks becoming the only country in Europe clinging on to an outdated system without any clear public policy justification. Norway’s path forward should be clear to all concerned. Multi-licensing does not abandon the principles of consumer protection but adapts them to the realities of the digital age we live in.
The Norwegian Parliament has the opportunity to conduct a comprehensive review of the current gambling framework and develop a modern licensing system that maintains the highest standards of consumer protection and enhances regulatory oversight.
By learning from other successful Nordic models, Norway can transform its gambling landscape and align with modern European regulatory best practices.
This isn’t about dismantling the current regulatory system, but rather evolving it toward a proven model. A modernised multi-licensing system for online gambling delivers what matters most—better protection for consumers and greater economic benefits for Norwegian society.
By Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA).
About EGBA
The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) is the Brussels-based trade association representing the leading online gambling operators established, licensed, and regulated within the EU, including bet365, Betsson, Entain, Evoke, Flutter, Kindred Group, LeoVegas, and Superbet, while Aircash and Sumsub are associate members. EGBA works together with national and EU authorities and other stakeholders towards a well-regulated and well-channelled online gambling market which provides a high level of consumer protection and takes account of the realities of the internet and online consumer demand.
EGBA members meet the highest regulatory standards and together possess 267 online gambling licenses to serve 32.5 million customers across 22 different European countries. They represent approximately one-third of Europe’s online gambling gross gaming revenue (GGR).
