Lotteritilsynet, the Norwegian Gambling Authority, has informed Norsk Tipping of a potential fine. The company faces a penalty of up to NOK 36 million (£2.6 million, €3.1 million, or $3.2 million). The fine is for preventing players from self-excluding from their gambling accounts.
The gambling act of Norway says all licensed operators should allow players to self-exclude from gambling at any time.
In a February 14 statement, the Norwegian Lottery Authority (Lotteritilsynet) said Norsk Tipping reported issues with an iOS update. This issue prevented players from self-excluding through the app between January and May of last year.
Regulators fined Norsk Tipping NOK 36 million, equal to 0.35% of its 2024 net turnover of NOK 10.2 billion. Before the regulator makes a final decision on the case, the operator has three weeks to respond.
Norsk Tipping informed the regulator of the issue in June 2024. It stated that a customer flagged the error on May 20, making them aware of it. The company fixed it two days later, but the bug had persisted for over four months.
Norsk Tripping says that the error most likely arose during an update of iOS software on January 16. This update stopped the self-exclusion tool on its native app from working properly. Per se, the option was not available to customers until the issue was set in May.
Norsk Tipping players can typically self-exclude entirely from gambling or block specific games on the monopoly operator’s site.
An initial meeting on the failing took place on July 7, after it raised the case with Lotteritilsynet in June.
iOS users couldn’t self-exclude through the app during this period. However, they could still do so via the website or by contacting customer service.
