European markets have begun to open their online poker regulations to allow for player sharing among different jurisdictions and regulators from one market—Portugal—have proposed a model for shared player liquidity to the European Union.
The model is called the Projeto de Regulamento que define os Requisitos Técnicos do Sistema Técnico do Jogo Online and was submitted to the European Commission by Portuguese gambling regulator Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos.
The commission will review the proposal, requiring a waiting period of three months.
The proposal allows for liquidity agreements with European markets as well as other international regulated markets that meet technical standards for integration and pooling. The move comes after Portugal issued its first online poker license to PokerStars, which has a strong international following.
It also comes as many European jurisdictions have been rethinking limiting player participation to players within their borders or “ring-fenced markets. France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, and the UK recently agreed on universal technical standards for liquidity sharing. The countries hope to launch the new system this year.
