Italian operators of any form of online gambling should mark 19th March 2018 bold in their calendars as this is the official deadline to apply for one of the 120 online casino licenses that are issued by the Italian government. However, the application doesn’t come cheap since the State of Italy is asking for a fee of 200.000 Euro, which will count towards the registration fee should the application be successful. The sale was made public in an official memo published by the European Union. Italy has announced several major changes to regulate online gambling and sports betting in the…

Italian police said on Wednesday they had seized assets worth 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) and issued 41 arrest warrants in raids on gambling companies in Italy and abroad run by the ‘Ndrangheta mafia organization. Police believe the firms, including six that were operating out of Malta, were used to launder vast sums of illicit cash. Italy’s mafia groups, including the ‘Ndrangheta from the southern region of Calabria, the Camorra from Naples and Sicily’s Cosa Nostra, have strengthened their grip on southern Italy’s economy and spread to the richer north during a three-year economic slump. Among the targets of Wednesday’s…

West – Italians are the second in the world for money lost in gambling in relation to the per capita income: $400 each per year. Preceded only by the Australians with $795. Who, it must be said, on average earn far more than Italians. This is the result of analysis from the President of the Association “Centro Sociale Papa Giovanni XXIII” and explained in a video. Starting from the amount bet by Italian citizens in 2013 (€84.7 billion) and subtracting what returned into their pockets in the form of winnings (€67.6 billion), it has been found the total loss: €17.1…

iGaming Business – Server-based gaming specialist Inspired Gaming has announced that Italian gaming company Gamenet has become the latest operator to launch its range of virtual sports games in the country. Inspired’s virtual sports products are already available to Italian players at more than 7,000 venues under existing agreements with SNAI, Sisal, Lottomatica, Eurobet and Cogetech. Inspired anticipates that over 10,000 venues in Italy will be live with its virtual sports products in the next few months with further operators including Intralot and Microgame. “Following this partnership Gamenet will be able to provide an even more extensive games library,” Gamenet’s…

iGaming Business – Italian retail and online sports betting operator Sindacato Nazionale Agenzie Ippiche (SNAI) has cited a decrease in revenues from sports bets, horse racing bets and amusements with prizes as the main causes behind a slight dip in total revenue during the three months to March 31, 2014. The company reported total revenue of €142.4 million ($195.9 million) in the first quarter of 2014, a drop of 0.8% on the €143.6 million recorded in the same period last year. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation also fell 1.1% from €37.9 million in the previous year to…

iGaming Business – Server-based gaming specialist Inspired Gaming Group has moved to strengthen its presence in Italy by opening a new corporate office in Rome. The firm’s Italian business has experienced rapid growth in recent times following deals with a number of companies including Italian gaming operator Cogetech and iGaming operator and platform provider Microgame. Inspired Gaming now operates 7,000 video lottery terminals in the country and has successfully launched the game Merlin for Comma 6a slot machines. The company’s Inspired Virtual Sports are also live who six customers, with a further seven clients in homologation or just about to…