French Gaming Authority Releases List of Granted Gaming License Applicants

Holding true to its planned release of licenses prior to the 2010 World Cup, the French gaming authority ARJEL (Autorité de Régulation des Jeux En Ligne, or the Authority of Regulation of Online Games) has released a list of gaming operators who have applied for and been granted licenses under the new regulatory agency.

The list, which was released on Tuesday, opens up horse racing and sports betting, but keeps online poker on the sideline for the immediate future. In the statement released today regarding the licenses, ARJEL has stated that “circle games” (which include poker) need clarification as to what is offered. This statement indicates that there could be some decisions as to what poker derivatives can be offered, the stakes, and what games (cash versus tournament) can be played.

“ARJEL delivers its first approvals today,” stated the president of ARJEL, Jean-Francois Vilotte, during the announcement earlier today. “To date, 24 companies have made 35 applications across the three fields we regulate: sporting bets, poker, and horse racing.” Vilotte spoke to the decisions that have to be made regarding poker, saying, “(Poker) will be able to begin play on or about June 28th, after we consult with the Maltese government and the European Commission.”

The list of operators that have been granted licenses do not have many of the usual suspects that the online community may have expected. Granted licenses across all three betting spectrums under the new French regulatory laws was Unibet Enterprises, Ltd., which is the operator of BetClic.com. Also in the game with a poker license is Everest Gaming, Ltd., the owner of Everest Poker, and BES SAS, the ownership company behind bwin. Some of the other companies that have been licensed are French organizations, including the former state-run gaming outlet.

Poker licenses were granted to Pari Mutuel Urbain, the former state-run outlet for gaming, Sajoo, SPS France Betting, and Table 14. All of these companies also applied and were granted licenses for sports betting. Concentrating solely on sports and horse racing action are such companies as Beturf, The French Games, France Betting, and Iliad Gaming.

Most notable on the list of licenses released by ARJEL was the lack of some of the bigger players in the online poker world. Microgaming, which had requested three licenses in an effort to take 888 Gaming to the French people, was not on the list of licenses granted. Another interesting name not on the license list is Party Gaming, which recently announced a multi-year agreement to launch ACFPoker.com in conjunction with Aviation Club De France. “Certain files of application remain in the course of instruction,” Vilotte said during the press conference. “There are several reasons that these applications are still under review, including the need for additional information from the applicants. The fact that these companies were not a part of the first issuance of licenses does not prejudge any decision on their application.”

Watching the new process of ARJEL’s regulation of the French gaming world are several companies that have pulled away from French action and have yet to apply for licenses. The British company Sportingbet, which operates the online poker site Paradise Poker, announced in May that it would not accept players from France due to the changes in the French laws. Betfair, based out of England, and William Hill have also closed their doors to the French market after the enactment of the law. These, as well as several other operations, are closely monitoring the actions of ARJEL as the French authority ushers in a new era in French online gaming.