When it comes to the gaming industry, people tend to doubt gambling, as most countries are against it. In most cases, the legality of gambling is being questioned by the public. After all, the gaming industry is known to be one of the most lucrative forms of generating revenue, and while most casinos can be trusted, there might be some bad apples as well.
The Online Gaming Industry
Online gambling is an essentially borderless activity that poses regulatory and enforcement challenges. Before the 1990s, if you wanted to gamble, you had two options; either visit a legitimate land-based casino or make bets at a bookmaker. However, with the emergence of the internet in the mid-1990s, a new form of gambling came to play; the online gaming casino.
However, there has been increasing movement towards the regulation of online gambling, mainly due to the futility of prohibition and also the importance of providing a regulated environment for gambling. Unlike land-based casinos, you can play at online casinos from anywhere in the world via your phone or computer. This makes it easier to sign up and start playing.
When is Gambling Illegal?
Is gambling legal or illegal - that depends on the laws of your government, as each country decides what kind of gambling is allowed within its borders. In Norway, the law regulating gambling is considered to be quite outdated and somewhat ineffective.
As our guest author Kristoffer Haagensen explains, the situation in Norway is not as straightforward as it is in many European countries. In Norway, only two companies are allowed to offer gambling services, both of which are state-owned. Kristoffer believes that this law is ineffective because people who want to gamble online will do so anyway, except they will do that in a foreign online casino.
Gambling from a country where it's illegal can get the player in massive trouble, however it is highly dependent on the laws and how severely they are enforced in that country. While in countries such as Norway there’s a low chance of getting into trouble for using a VPN to access a foreign casino, it’s much more risky in authoritarian countries.
Although there is still a relatively poor understanding of the dynamic nature of online gambling, the increased level of trust and legitimacy of online gambling sites and willingness of players to bet in the global online gaming industry is something that assures you about it being legal.
What is a License?
Some jurisdictions require casinos to have a locally issued license to legally serve the citizens of that country. Others are laxer, requiring any kind of license at all. Either way, playing in a licensed online casino is always the smarter choice.
If a casino has a license, it means that it follows the issuing country's laws. Many licenses stipulate that the online casino needs to ensure the protection of personal information. In addition, it needs to provide secure and trusted payments, and there can be absolutely no interference with the randomness of game results.
While the best option would be to play at casinos with a license of your own country, some other trusted licensees include the United Kingdom, Malta, Curaçao and Gibraltar. While some of these countries might seem like just small island nations, they are big players in the casino industry, and their licenses are well respected worldwide. Find safe and licensed casinos at nye casinoer 2021.
What is The Legal Age For Gambling?
Gamblers, casino owners and the opposers of gambling can agree on one thing - children should not gamble. That's why almost every country in the world has a strictly enforced age limit. The age may differ between countries. In the United States, for instance, the minimum age for gambling is 21. However, in most European countries, the age requirement is 18. In Norway, the regulated age for partaking in any form of online gaming is 18, according to section 8a of the Lottery Act.
Licensed online casinos do thorough checks on each new player, making sure that they have reached the minimum age. To sign up, you will need to provide them with your name, date of birth and sometimes a photo of your ID - they do that to comply with the gambling laws. These checks are necessary because without them, it would be easy for children to gamble online - after all, there is no bouncer at the door like at land-based casinos.
Conclusion
Gambling is certainly considered to be a legal activity in the global online gaming industry, as long as all rules and regulations pertaining to it are taken into consideration. Following these guidelines, there won't be any form of doubt concerning online gambling as regarding online casinos.