How does Wazdan operate in the Swiss iGaming market legally? Thanks to its SGSA licensing, Wazdan adds another Swiss partnership to the list! (Image Courtesy of wazdan.com)
Switzerland’s iGaming market is impressive with a decent range of online casinos now operating under the Switzerland SGSA. In fact, you can find many of these online casinos reviewed over on our sister website published in German.
The latest deal Wazdan has struck is with 7 Melons under the Grand Casino Kursaal Bern AG company, which is the casino’s operator.
On the 7melons.ch casino site, players can now access 20 Wazdan video slots. Many of these titles include the Wazdan jackpot feature ‘Hold The Jackpot’. Specifically, jackpot titles include Power of Gods™: Hades Hold the Jackpot (243-ways-to-win), Power of Gods™: Medusa: Hold the Jackpot, Prosperity Pearls, Sun of Fortune, Sizzling Bells™, Jelly Reelstm, and Burning Stars 3tm.
Other top Wazdan titles also available in the 7 Melons online casino video slot section are 9 Lions, Infinity Hero, Great Book of Magic Deluxe, Larry the Leprechaun, Black Hawk Deluxe, Valhalla, Magic of the Ring and more. Some of these slots were recently mentioned in our top 5 Wazdan games news report.
As a side note, all titles will come with the unique adjustable Volatility Levels™ feature so players can change across low, medium or high volatility gameplay, while all games come with theoretical RTPs of over 96%.
Andrzej Hyla, Chief Commercial Officer at Wazdan, said: “We’re delighted to see such a diverse selection of our innovative games go live with 7 Melons”. See the full Wazdan news story here.
Swiss Federal Supreme Court Adamant on Enforcing Rule for No Oversea Online Gambling Sites
Wazdan is positioned in a unique market that is cut off from the rest of Europe. The licensing in the country only allows Swiss companies to operate online gambling sites—a rule that the Swiss Federal Supreme Court recently upheld after addressing complaints brought forward by 3 online betting groups that have not been named at this point.
The complaints came in the form of an appeal relating to the country’s domain name system (DNS) blocking policy. All 3 complainants have had their website blocked. Adding to this, further information reveals that the trio of companies operate under the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) licence, which presumably these gambling firms also have offices and possibly headquarters in Malta.
Sources reveal that the key argument presented to the courts was that banning their betting and online casino websites is tantamount to illegally restricting economic freedom.
On top of this, a partial argument was likely along the lines of, ‘hey your honour – we operate under one of the strictest and most reputable licensing authorities in the world and under EU rules’. Nonetheless, Intercantonal Gaming Court governing Switzerland’s online gambling market dismissed the appeal. The companies will remain blocked.
The Court’s Verdict: The laws pertaining to restricting economic freedom do not apply to the gambling industry. The legislature bypasses this rule because of a special constitutional adjustment already in place. That means any real money online gambling activity can legally be restricted to Swiss companies operating under the SGSA.
Why Can Wazdan Operate in Switzerland Under the SGSA?
Although Wazdan is not a Swiss company, and neither are many of the other software providers that operate in the country, game developer can operate in the Swiss market. Now the primary reason for this is because the deals made between operator and software provider for the provision of iGaming casino game titles is a business-to-business (B2B) agreement.
As a result, non-Swiss game developers are able to apply for a game supply licence from the SGSA. Once the authority approves the licence, the developer is free to approach any other online casino licenced under the Swiss iGaming authority’s framework.
Wazdan SGSA Licencing: Each Wazdan game needs to be independently certified under the SGSA in order to become available to online casinos operating in the country. Some of the first titles approved for the Swiss market were titles such Choco Reels™, Infinity Hero™, Black Horse™ Deluxe and 9 Lions back in October 2020. Check out the full Wazdan slot game portfolio here.
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