What Is the Alderney Gambling Control Commission?
Alderney is technically a part of the United Kingdom, although it has long been self-governed in matters internal. There are several islands similar to this in the geographical region known as “British Overseas Territories,” but Alderney is the only one that grants electronic gaming licenses. The key thing to remember is that because this island is not a member of the European Union, it is not required to follow EU legal rules and protocols.
The Alderney Gambling Control Commission is a regulatory body with one aim in mind: to regulate the island’s internet gambling sector. It’s made up of four individuals. Because Alderney is one of the world’s major offshore destinations, it has fairly permissive income restrictions. To obtain a license, all you have to do is set up a firm on the island. This may only be an address; you don’t need to be “physically” on the island to operate your casino’s servers. These are both phrases that are quite typical. Alderney is a little island in the English Channel that has a population of about 2,000 people. There are no data centers on the island owing to unstable internet infrastructure, and the size of the location isn’t large enough to house businesses and their staff. As a result, your business’s address can only be a P.O. box in practice.
There are two forms of e-gaming licenses available. To acquire a license, you must hire an independent agent; you do not need to be physically present in Alderney to apply. The agent you choose will establish an address for your firm and file the Alderney Gambling Control Commission on your behalf. Licenses differ in price based on the net income of your casino and license types. We can state that they range from 17,500 GBP to 400,000 GBP, with a mean of around 200,000 GBP. For example, if your casino made more than 20 million but less than 30 million British pounds in net profits, the license fee will be 290.000 pounds. 10.000 GBP is also required as an application deposit.
Reliability
The AGCC has taken a cautious approach, carefully vetting its rules rather than attempting to attract as much new money and business as possible. Alderney has also been working on forming a worldwide cooperative agreement with partners. The AGCC has several Memoranda of Understanding with gaming boards throughout the world, including the Danish Gaming Authority, Nevada Gaming Board, and relevant commissions in Ontario, Canada to tackle matters of probity and due-diligence investigations as well as divide data storage solutions.
The AGCC has agreements and partnerships with other organizations that regulate gaming, including the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC), the Guernsey Financial Intelligence Services, the Guernsey Police, and Credit Bureau. It is aided by Law Officers of the Crown in Guernsey for legal issues, as well as London-based professional accounting firm Dixon Wilson, which specializes in gambling law.
Popularity
Alderney is a traffic center for the entire online gaming industry, including casino games, sports betting, and live casino broadcasts. There are approximately 2000 Internet gaming sites based in Alderney operated by around 350 firms. Bgo Casino and Paddy Power are among the AGCC-licensed brands that operate with an Alderney license. The low costs and reputable regulation – Alderney does not have corporate tax, VAT, or gaming duty – has attracted online gaming businesses to the island. Other pluses include a stable currency, rapid fiber-optic connections that span between the UK and Europe as well as beyond, and great IT assistance.
Because of its tiny size, Alderney would struggle to accommodate even a modest competition. Many of the AGCC’s employees do not live on the island and travel there via ferry. Alderney, on the other hand, serves as an important channel for hosting online gambling tournaments with a variety of iGaming companies, transporting more traffic than anywhere else on earth in this industry.
Despite the fact that there are obstacles ahead in the world of internet gaming, it is clear that Alderney is moving forward on its tried-and-true path – with a focus on a defined strategy and tight regulation.
Responsible Gaming and Player Protection
Player Protection
The AGCC is responsible for monitoring and auditing the operations of online casinos that have obtained a license from it. In this regard, all license holders are required to inform users about the game’s rules ahead of time. Furthermore, fraudulent advertising is expressly forbidden. Players are entitled to make a complaint to the AGCC regarding any casino licensed by this agency. This is a rather significant procedure. After lodging an allegation:
- The commission’s executive secretary will contact the casino authorities as soon and as quickly as possible after receiving a complaint.
- If the casino and the customer are unable to resolve a dispute, an extensive study will be conducted.
- The commission’s decision is final. Parties have the option of requesting a hearing, although they must be physically on Alderney to do so.
Most other complaint resolution services operate “automatically” and require you to submit a web form. When compared to other licensing bodies that provide a complaint resolution service, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission is exceptional: It treats these complaints with the same importance as a court does. You can even appear before the commission in Alderney if you are able to do so.
Responsible Gaming
The AGCC license does not require gamers to practice responsible gaming. In other words, online casinos with this license are not required to provide responsible gaming services. However, the commission encourages casinos to do so and promotes websites that offer these services in its annual reports. It appears that responsible gaming services will become compulsory for the Malta Gaming Authority-licensed casinos soon. In May 2018, the Malta Gaming Authority extended these standards into its license, and it appears that Alderney Gambling Control Commission will be the next one to do so.
