And The Wall Came Tumbling Down...

November 9, 1989 will forever be remembered as the historic date that the Berlin Wall finally came down; triggering the reunification of a country and the re-union a people divided.

A Time for Reflection
The event seemed to symbolize a shift in policy and a feeling of hope and reconciliation permeated throughout Europe. Today is the twentieth anniversary of this momentous occasion and would serve well as a time of reflection.

National Monopolies
We have a European Community which aims to develop free trade throughout the EU but questions are increasingly being asked by the gambling industry as to why there is free trade for the majority of industries and yet many countries still operate national betting monopolies.

An End to Disparity?
Industry pressure groups are lobbying for a better deal for punters. They look forward to the day that every European country can provide access to safe, registered casinos that operate outside of claustrophobic monopolies.

They aim to instigate trade across borders; giving customers a choice of casinos, along with all the benefits that come with competition.

Most of all they want equity: an end to disparity. They want life injected into a corrupt, stale system which bears no resemblance to the arrangements in place for other industries.

Right2Bet Lobby across Europe
On the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, organizations such as Right2Bet are using the occasion to highlight the inequalities that still exist across Europe. They have set up an informative website that includes an online petition for freedom of trade for the gambling industry. To date they have secured over 10,750 signatures.

With the most famous physical barrier to European freedom now in pieces, lobbyists are arguing that the time is right to tear down the virtual barriers that still block free European gambling.