Slovenian Gaming Company Step Closer to Advertising in Austria
Luxembourg/Vienna, 17 April (STA) - Casino operator HIT might soon be allowed to advertise its Slovenia-based casinos in Austria, as the advocate-general of the EU Court of Justice found on Tuesday that the Austrian legislation regulating the advertising of foreign casinos violates the principle of free flow of services in the EU.
Under Austrian legislation, advertising of gaming facilities located
abroad is permitted only if a specific country's legislation includes
provisions to protect consumers from the negative effects of gaming
matching those included in Austria's legislation.
The Austrian
Finance Ministry has rejected HIT's advertising request, so the company and
its Kranjska Gora-based subsidiary HIT LARIX, located near the boarder with
Austria, challenged the decision at the Vienna Administrative
Court.
The Administrative Court in turn requested the EU Court for a
preliminary opinion on whether the relevant provisions are in line with the
EU's body of laws.
The EU Court is expected to rule in a few months
at the soonest, however, it follows the opinion of the advocate-general in
80% of the cases, according to Austrian press agency APA.