Alderney Regulator Gets Award
Published: Friday, June 03, 2005 Online-Casinos.com
ALDERNEY REGULATOR GETS AWARD
André Wilsenach Named Online Casino Regulator of the Year
Channel Islands online gambling jurisdiction Alderney was in the news last week
as the Alderney Gambling Control Commission was named for excellence by the World
Online Gambling Law Report.
The Commission's CEO, André Wilsenach, was chosen as “Regulator of
the Year 2005 by the Report. The former South African has also served as CEO of
a South African provincial gaming board, and was at one time a member of South
Africa’s National Gaming Board. He is currently a member of a number of associated
organisations which monitor and regulate both land-based and online casino sites.
Alderney Gambling Commission chairman John Godfrey paid tribute to Wilsenach,
saying that his energy and skill has made Alderney "...the top name for online
gambling regulators."
The Commission was also reported to be engaging with Alderney legislators in revising
laws to ensure that the island does not lose business following any future UK
developments in regard to the licensing of online gambling.
Although the island is a UK entity, it is self governing and has passed legislation
that allows online casino and gambling sites to operate within regulations that
meet most international standards.
In 2004 gambling profits increased 43 percent on the island with a surplus of
GBP 767 794, and the government is concerned that the new UK developments do not
prejudice the continued success of the jurisdiction. It is therefore likely that
changes will be implemented to ensure that Alderney remains competitive.
One area may be the current requirement that at least one worker from each online
casino company be physically present on the island. It has been reported that
legislators may seek to relax that rule. There are also plans to open internet
hosting in Guernsey, another one of the Channel Isles, which is thought to have
a stronger IT infrastructure and is thus better connected to the Internet.
Last year alone the Commission awarded six new licences to blue chip operators
worldwide: Wagerworks (Alderney) 4 Limited, Blue Square Gaming (Alderney) Limited,
WagerWorks (Alderney) 5 Limited, Cantor Casino (Alderney) Limited, Paddy Power
(Alderney) Limited and Samvo International Limited.
In addition, The AGCC issued a total of five Certificates of Prior Approval: Tribeca
Tables Software LLC, Gaming & Entertainment Group Inc; Secure & Holdings
Ltd., Chartwell Technology Ltd. and Orbis Technology Ltd.
The total number of AGCC licence holders now stands at 14 operators and includes
among others, top names Ritz Interactive, SkyBet, Hard Rock Casino, Lucky Me,
The Price is Right, Blue Square Gaming, Virgin Games, Cantor Casino, Paddy Power
and Samvo International.
AGCC Chairman John Godfrey says that in order for Alderney to "...safeguard
its worldwide lead and to continue attracting blue chip international operators,"
it has carried out a review of legislation and has proposed changes that include
bringing to an end the requirement for licence holders to have a nominee on the
island.
The fee for an interactive gaming licence or an electronic betting licence is
GBP 75,000 per year, and GBP 30 000 for a Certificate of Prior Approval.
