Judge prohibited the local authority from blocking access to betting sites outside the State
The Federal Court prohibited, this Friday (26.Jul.2024) that the Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency) blocks betting sites outside the State of Rio de Janeiro. As of last Tuesday (July 23), the agency prevented, by order of the Federal Court of the 1st Region (Brasília), that “bets” not registered according to the State’s rules were accessed in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Here is the full of the decision (PDF – 39 Kb).
The block was a request Loterj (Lotteries of the State of Rio de Janeiro, an agency that oversees games in the State), which is based on a state decree published in 2023.
The National Association of Games and Lotteries (ANJL) has contacted the TRF-1 – the same one that decided on the blocking – for clarification on the scope of the court decision. In a decision published this Friday, judge Pablo Zuniga Dourado said he had verified, based on documents attached to the case, that the blocking may have affected other companies that are within the rules of Loterj.
He then ordered an urgent summons to Anatel to state its position on compliance with the decision that resulted in the blockade. He also warned the agency not to exceed the limits of Rio de Janeiro. “Anatel is hereby warned that compliance with the court decision must be limited to its exact terms and cannot go beyond the limits of the State of Rio de Janeiro”.
Understand the case
The sanction was applied by Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency) after a court order at the request of Loterj (the agency that oversees the sector in Rio de Janeiro). The blockade affected at least 115 companies. In complying with the decision, Anatel claimed technical difficulties in limiting the blockade to a single state, as requested by Loterj.
At the end of June, the agency obtained a court ruling to remove all betting sites without official registration to operate in the state. Loterj understands that companies need to register in Rio de Janeiro and be subject to state inspections to be able to operate in the territory.
The authority was based on a state decree on the regulation of betting edited before the approval of the law, by the National Congress, which regulates sports betting in Brazil (14,790 2023). The text establishes that, in Rio de Janeiro, it is Loterj that oversees the sector.
At the time, a Provisional Measure was in force (1.182 of 2023) that dealt with the subject. Both the law in force and the MP of 2023 established the Ministry of Finance as the entity responsible for monitoring the activities of these companies and granting new licenses.
“Fixed-odds bets will be operated in a competitive environment, subject to prior authorization to be issued by the Ministry of Finance, under the terms of this Law and the regulations set out in § 3 of art. 29 of Law No. 13,756, of December 12, 2018.”says Art. 4 of Law 14,790 of 2023.
Companies say blocking is irregular
Associations representing companies in the sector say that Loterj’s move goes against the law that regulates sports betting in Brazil. In a note sent to Poder360The ANJL (National Association of Games and Lotteries), which represents 17 bookmakers, said it views the blockade with “perplexity”.
It also highlights that, according to the law, companies have until December 31 of this year to obtain the necessary licenses to operate in the country.
“The decision to suspend the websites was made without the companies ever having been heard either in the legal process or by Anatel, at a time when the market is undergoing a regulatory process in Brazil, with a transition period guaranteed nationwide to operators until December 31, 2024.”said ANJL in a note
The association also stated that the situation creates legal uncertainty and that, although the jurisprudence of the STF (Supreme Federal Court) states that the operation of lotteries should not be a monopoly of the Federal Power, regulation is the sole responsibility of the Union.
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