As France Prepares to Legalize Online Gambling, Riviera Casinos Seek Industry Approval

The French Minister of Budget, Jean-François Copé, has established the Consultative Committee for implementation of the monitoring policy of responsible  games and gambling (Cojer). The goals of the budget minister indude: ensuring the integrity, safety and reliability with regard to gambling activities, and seeing to the accountability of their operation. 

Eventual Legalization

Preparing for the eventual legalization, a number of French casinos have sought, and won, the approval of the industry standards body, eCogra, Ltd., and can now publicly state that they are among the safest, most secure gaming sites on the Internet, including http://www.casinofrancenet.com and  http://www.goldenrivierapoker.com .

The Vegas Partner Lounge Group, which owns a number of online casinos and poker rooms, produces those two sites.

 "Leading online casino and poker room brands recognize that players care about the "Play It Safe" seal, and that seal-bearing casinos attract more players and create additional revenue opportunities," said Andrew Beveridge, the chief executive officer of the industry regulatory group eCogra, who is based in London. "We applaud these operators for their efforts and encourage others to help us reach our 100 seals goal by committing to the eCogra principals of fair gambling, responsible conduct and player protection."

The group eCOGRA provides an international framework of best operational and player practice requirements enforced through inspections, reviews and continuous monitoring by independent global audit companies. Thus far, 85 sites comply with these requirements and have been awarded the "Play It Safe" Seal, according to Beveridge.

The French online casino business has been flush for several years, and some experts say that the French gamble twice as often and for three times as long as British online casino players.

Experts note that traditional casino gambling in France is regulated, and restricted to state-related projects. These government-run betting businesses enterprises include Pari Mutuel Urbain Lotto and the National Lottery.

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Based in Rivera

Most of the French casinos are in the Riviera, but there is a variation in EU policy which has permitted French players to play at any online casino, experts said.

The growth of high-speed internet connections in France is powering the online casino trend, as broadband connections are needed to use the online gaming software correctly.

Though some financial institutions in the U.S. have agreed to stop allowing the use of credit cards for online gambling, as part of a settlement with ambitious Democratic New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, online gamblers in the U.S. typically use offshore payment systems like Neteller or Firepay, and can easily access the entertainment options now being offered by the French cyber-casinos. Eventually, the government said, all online casinos may be owned, at least partly, by the government. “The French model is worth preserving and exporting,” said Cope.

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