Austrians prefer diversity of operators to state monopoly
A study on online gambling commissioned by the Austrian Association for Betting and Gambling (OVWG) and conducted by Marketagent comes to interesting results: The majority of respondents are against the gambling monopoly and wish for more operator diversity on the Austrian market.
For the study, about 1500 representatively selected Austrians between the ages of 18 and 69 were interviewed in December 2019. The majority of those surveyed are sceptical about the Austrian gambling monopoly: While a single gambling operator is sufficient for only 21.9 percent, the majority of respondents (55 percent) would like to have several operators to choose from. 81.2 percent of Austrians consider it important that the state is (at least partially) involved in the selection of operators. Austrians therefore want state control on the one hand, but also expect a corresponding diversity of offers on the other.
How can these two wishes for diversity of operators and control best be achieved? With a licensing system in which the licences are not limited in quantity but are linked to compliance with high player protection standards!