{"id":18828,"date":"2025-05-22T14:18:56","date_gmt":"2025-05-22T11:18:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/igamingeuropa.com\/?p=18828"},"modified":"2025-05-22T14:18:56","modified_gmt":"2025-05-22T11:18:56","slug":"court-ruling-restricts-germanys-ability-to-block-illegal-gambling-websites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/igamingeuropa.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/22\/court-ruling-restricts-germanys-ability-to-block-illegal-gambling-websites\/","title":{"rendered":"Court Ruling Restricts Germany\u2019s Ability to Block Illegal Gambling Websites"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Germany\u2019s Federal Administrative Court has ruled that only internet service providers (ISPs) directly responsible for transmitting illegal gambling content can be compelled to block access to such websites. This decision limits the scope of regulatory enforcement under the country&#8217;s gambling treaty, emphasizing the importance of clear liability for website blocking orders. <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-white-color\">Germany gambling website blocking<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The case originated in October 2022 when the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gamingregulation.com\/agency\/germany\/gemeinsamen-gl%C3%BCcksspielbeh%C3%B6rde-der-l%C3%A4nder\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States (GGL)<\/a> ordered an ISP to block several Malta-based gambling websites that were considered unauthorized in Germany. The ISP challenged this directive, and both the Administrative Court and the Higher Administrative Court supported the ISP\u2019s position. Ultimately, the Leipzig-based Federal Administrative Court upheld these rulings, referencing specific legal provisions, including \u00a7 9(1) sentence 3 no. 5 of the Gl\u00fcStV and \u00a7 8 of the Telemedia Act. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In its decision, the court clarified that, although the Telemedia Act has been repealed, the Gl\u00fcStV still refers to the version of \u00a7 8 TMG that was valid when the treaty was enacted. This provision holds that providers are liable only if they initiate content transmission or select the recipients of that content. Since the ISP in question did not meet these criteria and had no proven connections to the gambling operators, the court found the blocking order to be invalid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Read also: <a href=\"https:\/\/igamingeuropa.com\/uk-gambling-commission-announces-major-improvements-in-customer-financial-risk-screening\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UK Gambling Commission Announces Major Improvements in Customer Financial Risk Screening<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The court also emphasized that \u00a7 9(1) sentence 3 no. 5 of the Gl\u00fcStV is a specific and exhaustive legal rule. This means authorities cannot enforce website blocks outside its defined scope, and no alternative legal basis for the order was identified during the case. As a result, the ruling reinforces the limited liability of ISPs and restricts the GGL\u2019s ability to impose website blocks unless direct responsibility can be established, shaping future legal and regulatory approaches to tackling illegal online gambling activities in Germany. <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-white-color\">Germany gambling website blocking<\/mark><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Germany\u2019s Federal Administrative Court has ruled that only internet service providers (ISPs) directly responsible for transmitting illegal gambling content can be compelled to block access to such websites. This decision limits the scope of regulatory enforcement under the country&#8217;s gambling treaty, emphasizing the importance of clear liability for website blocking orders. Germany gambling website blocking &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":18829,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[731,25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-germany-gambling-news","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Germany Gambling Website Blocking: Court Limits ISP Responsibilities<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Explore the recent court ruling on Germany gambling website blocking and understand how it impacts ISPs and online gambling regulations. 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