Sweden's Gambling Minster plans to accelerate his project to introduce new gaming legislation that could lead to the country loosening its regulation of online gambling by 2018.
The state-owned gaming company, Svenska Spel, has been the only entity legally allowed to provide regulated online gaming services in Sweden for the better part of a decade. However, the monopoly has proven to be less than successful in curbing unlicensed gaming companies from operating in the country, with Svenska Spel controlling less than half of the country's online gaming market.
Sweden’s gambling legislation has traditionally been and still is very disconnected from the realities and demands of the market
The Secretary General of Sweden’s Association of Online Gambling Operators, Gustaf Hoffstedt, stated on the Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBCC) website that, in coming weeks, the country may take steps to liberalize the current gaming laws.