Merkur and Edict Games Facing German Market Exit
Published November 22, 2017 by Florin P
A recent ruling by the German Supreme Federal Court in October could prompt the withdrawal of Merkur and Edict games from German online casinos.
The Gauselmann group is contemplating the possibility of withdrawing from supplying software to online casinos catering to Germans, in order to comply with the German Federal Administrative Court which upheld the ban on online gambling within German national borders last month. De facto this means that Merkur and Edict games which belong to the group will not be available to German players anymore.
A Big Change for Germans
Merkur games are immensely popular among German players and this this will directly affect Germans who play at online casinos offering these games. Süddeutsche Zeitung and other media sources have reported that the Gauselmann Group sells their software for slots to a subsidiary headquartered in the Isle of Man and that from this location, they target German players in spite of the federal ban.
Online Casinos Adjusting to New Reality
Online casinos with Merkur/Edict games are scrambling to make the necessary adjustments; the gaming libraries of some are based almost exclusively on these. One of the affected online casinos Platin Casino has emailed affiliates letting them know of the news and assuring that new software providers will be added soon. For brands like Platin Casino and others, this news comes as a big and unpleasant surprise.
The logical thing to do for brands is to find new software providers, but with a very short deadline for removing Merkur/Edict games (quoted as near as next Monday), this might prove harder to achieve. Time will tell if fitting alternatives will be found in due time, and how German players and affiliates will be affected by this move in the long run.
