Gauselmann Group announced Friday it has now become one of the first providers to be granted a license to operate virtual slot-machine games in Germany. The Eastern Westphalian company now aims to legally provide its “first-class gaming fun on the worldwide web,” taking advantage of being an early mover in this space.
The group first filed the application to offer virtual slot-machine games with the Saxony-Anhalt State Administration Office back in July 2021. Markus Ettlin, Management Spokesperson of Merkur Sportwetten GmbH, said the company had been “waiting in the wings for some time” with its range of virtual slot-machine games under the ‘Merkur Spiel’ brand.
“This approval is an important and big step for us towards becoming the best omnichannel provider in the whole of Europe,” he stated. “We are enthusiastic that we can now offer our online players the chance to enjoy the same Merkur classics that have been played millions of times at our bricks-and-mortar venues.”
The development of games content for both the land-based and online segments has been one of the core competencies of the Gauselmann Group for many years, the company says. At a total of 13 locations worldwide, gaming specialists develop games and game systems based on current market and customer trends, “thus always striking the right cord with gaming enthusiasts,” a press release claims.
While international gaming has long been at home in the digital world, the German online gaming market is now also able “to benefit from the game developments of the Gauselmann Group.” The offering of virtual slot-machine games on the Internet complies with the legal requirements set out in the recent State Treaty on Gambling.
Gauselmann’s new license certifies that the corporate group fully complies with the regulatory and statutory requirements governing the operation of virtual slot-machine games under the new treaty.
As a result, the company is now one of the few providers already connected to the “LUGAS” cross-state gambling supervision system introduced along with the State Treaty on Gambling. The virtual slot-machine games that will be offered under the “Merkur Spiel” brand in the future have also been tested and approved by the Saxony-Anhalt State Administration Office and thus also guarantee compliance with German legislation.
“The Eastern Westphalians are thus demonstrating once again the high priority given to player protection within the Gauselmann Group – in both the land-based and online segments,” the company concluded.
