According to multiple reports, the government of Greece will soon bring online gaming into the legal realm.
In order to keep in line with current European Union restrictions, there will be certain strictures placed on the business itself. While the particulars have not yet been made public, it’s safe to guess that they would mirror the current state of online poker in countries such as Italy and France. The government will doubtless draw a sizable chunk in profit, which will help the Grecian legislature repay part of its recent 110 billion Euro bailout.
If passed by parliament, this new legalization would bear fruit almost instantly. In the next two to three years, in fact, the bill as currently written would bring in an estimated one billion Euros. This added capital would be of great assistance to a nation currently struggling to meet the revenue requirements imposed by the EU and International Monetary Fund.
Beyond the online realm, Greece also plans to allow the use of low-stakes slot machines. These devices would be placed in several sanctioned areas, easily accessible to the general public.
As the United States continues to wage war over the legal status of internet gaming, those in power would do well to monitor the effectiveness of the Grecian situation. The models assembled by other nations will undoubtedly provide us with an idea of what works and what doesn’t, in the most practical of senses.