Legal Compliance Issues: Sweden’s Channelisation Rate Drops to Critically Low 77%

Sweden’s channelisation goal, which is the percentage of licensed gaming offerings it aims to have on the market, is currently set at 90%. To analyze the channelisation rates for online gaming in the country, the Swedish survey organization SKOP was commissioned by BOS. They examined specific categories such as sports betting and online casino. Gustaf Hoffstedt, the secretary-general at BOS, emphasized the seriousness of the low channelisation rate. He stated that the Swedish licensing system is in a serious situation and too much power has been exerted by the state to enforce measures that have not been well received by gambling consumers. To reverse this development, Hoffstedt believes that the regulator, Spelinspektionen, should focus on finding and shutting down unlicensed offerings in the market. According to SKOP’s survey results, 77% of the participants knew the websites they used for online gambling were licensed, while 11% knew they were not licensed, and 12% were unsure. The survey also showed that lotteries have the highest channelisation rate at 91%, followed by harness racing betting at 89% and sports betting at 84%. Online casino and poker have channelisation rates of 72%.