The betting and gambling is regulated differently in each of the Member States of the Union. Some national laws have chosen to completely ban gambling and gambling. Most, give one or more institutions exclusive rights to operate in this sector, usually for the benefit of a de facto monopoly in favor of the national lottery and betting.
The jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Communities (ECHO) qualifies betting and gambling as special economic activities, and has repeatedly admitted the possibility of limiting the freedom to provide services , although there must be a reason prime on such restriction.
One of the most prominent recent cases is that of the bookmaker Bin International Ltd (Bin) in Portugal. This well-known betting house has its registered office in Gibraltar and offers a variety of online gambling services.
In there is an exclusive concession to Department Jogs ad Santa Casa de Moratoria de Lisboan (equivalent to State Lotteries in Spain), nonprofit institution that allocates the profits to charity. Bin concluded sponsorship agreements with the Portuguese.
Football League (PLOP) by which web betting advertised this entity, so that the direction of the bookmaker Portuguese decided to fine both entities for having promoted, organized and operated bets electronically, with the granting of these licenses an exclusive power of the State. Following this decision, Bin International Ltd and the Portuguese League brought actions before the courts of Portugal. Admitted these, the court filed a preliminary ruling to the ECHO, asking whether the legislation granting exclusive to that betting a monopoly on the game.
