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ADM official says Italy’s ad ban can hinder licensed gambling operators

Regulation1 min read

Antonio Giuliani, head of ADM’s remote gambling and betting office, discussed Italy’s advertising ban and the regulator’s relationship with licensed operators at an industry event on 3 November. He described the relationship as collaborative and said new technical rules for online gambling are intended to support security and certification, not simply increase state control.

Antonio Giuliani, director of the remote gaming and betting office at the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM), spoke at an IMGL masterclass on eight years of Italy's gambling advertising ban. Giuliani said the advertising ban sometimes does not help licensed operators. The ban was introduced in Italy in 2018. He added that the ban came as a response to an excess.

Giuliani said licensed operators are not a counterparty but an operational arm of ADM. He described ADM's oversight as collaborative rather than solely repressive.

Giuliani rejected the idea that the new technical rules for online gambling simply serve to increase state control. He described the rules as a tool to guide the sector towards more advanced security and certification standards.

Giuliani acknowledged that operators without an Italian licence create unfair competition for compliant businesses. He said ADM must insist more on tackling the illegal gambling offer. He said Italy has long had a rule on blocking payments to foreign operators, which ADM has been trying for a long time to implement. He also noted that the agent provocateur, used in other countries, is not currently available in the Italian system for this type of activity.

Giuliani referred to the guidelines adopted by the communications authority AGCOM. He expressed great esteem and attention for AGCOM's work.

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