NORWEGIAN ONLINE GAMBLING MARKET GREW 6.1 PERCENT IN 2007

27 June 2008

Norwegian Gambling Commission statistics claim 244 000 of its citizens use Internet gambling


The Norwegian government may take a dim view of online gambling (see previous InfoPowa reports) but its citizens certainly do not share it, statistics from the Norwegian Gambling Commission suggest.

The entertainment publication ISA-guide reports that figures released recently by the Commission show that the online gaming market in Norway grew by 6.1 percent in 2007, with an estimated 244 000 citizens gambling online.

The Commission revealed that Norwegians spent Euro 961 million online, of which 82.9 percent or Euro 797 million went to foreign operators, with Norsk Rikstoto and Norsk Tipping accounting for another USD 258 million.

Research carried out on a representative sample of 10 000 Norwegians between the ages of 16 and 74 found that 12 percent of Norwegian adult men gambled online during 2007, while only 2 percent of the female population participated. A surprising 9 percent of the adults who had gambled online preferred to do so via mobile phones.

The Norwegian Lotto was stated as the preferred online game by 48 percent of the sample, followed by online Poker at 28 percent, sports betting at 27 percent and casino games at 7 percent.

In terms of favoured sites, 21 percent named Unibet as their preferred venue, followed by Betsson with 14 percent, Expekt with 11 percent, and NordicBet with 10 percent.

52 percent of telephone calls received by the gambling addiction helpline during 2007 were related to poker.

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa