Home » OCW News » January 2012 » Playtech Applies for Jersey Remote Gaming License

Playtech Applies for Jersey Remote Gaming License

Date published: 30 January 2012

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Top-rated online gambling software developer Playtech has made history by being the first ever company to apply for a remote gaming license in Jersey, a British Crown Dependency island based off the coast of Normandy, France.

LSE-listed Playtech reportedly applied for a Jersey remote gambling license from the Jersey Gambling Commission after months of negotiations between it, the Commission and the Jersey Enterprise. In this vein, the Jersey Enterprise business support and advice service described Playtech's remote gaming license application as 'a significant step forward'.

Playtech Sees Benefits of the New Licensing Regime

Said Playtech CEO, Mor Weizer, 'We are delighted to be seeking an operating licence in Jersey. We met last year with the Jersey authorities in Israel who convinced us of the merits of the new licensing regime and their commitment to the sector.

"With many of our existing licensees having operations in the Channel Islands it makes good sense for us to seek a licence in Jersey to support our customers from a regulated jurisdiction with a first-class infrastructure," he said.

Jersey's ambition to become an online gambling-friendly jurisdiction received a considerable boost in February 2011, when the island's Assembly of the States ratified legislation designed to establish the Jersey Gambling Commission with a view of issuing remote gaming licenses to attract many of the world's largest remote gambling companies.

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There is little doubt that Jersey saw how well neighbouring islands Guernsey and Alderney have embraced online gambling, both of which are well-known and successful remote gambling-friendly jurisdictions, prompting its decision to follow suit. The remote gaming industry is highly lucrative, and one that provides a substantial financial boost to the various jurisdictions around the world that support it.

Playtech Rubber Stamps Jersey iGaming Industry

Said Jersey Economic Development Minister, Alan Maclean, 'I see this licence application from a renowned market leader like Playtech as a stamp of approval for our new iGaming industry. It demonstrates how we can leverage Jersey's reputation for excellent regulation, infrastructure and world-class professional services by developing exciting new opportunities for our economy from the lucrative global iGaming market.'

As one of the world's premier developers of cutting edge online casino games, Playtech currently has around 1000 employees in five countries, including its headquarters in the Isle of Man, the UK, Israel, Bulgaria and Estonia, where most of its brightest developers and designers are based.