Deutsche Telekom confirmed that it had applied for one of the 20 online sports betting licences that will be made available by the authorities in Germany and is looking at acquiring Deutsche Sportwetten, a subsidiary of Casino Austria. The German telecoms group told Reuters that the process was at a very early stage and it was “not yet certain whether that (it) will turn into an operating business”.
The German telecoms giant was allowed to operator and offer online betting products by its board members and shareholders in 2012 and has submitted the application to the Interior Ministry of the German state of Hesse for a licence that would only allow for sports bets to be offered and a complete ban on online poker and casino games. The company would not comment on the amounts being discussed regarding the potential buy out of Deutsche sportwetten.
Operators such as bwin party, William Hill and PokerStars have consistently argued that such a regulatory set up was contrary to European trade principles and would encourage the development of illegal operators, unconstrained by the legal limitation regulated companies adhere to.
