Recreational and gambling machines

Draft Decree amending Decree 23/2005 of 22 February approving the Regulation on recreational and gambling machines.

The rulings of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia 926/2017 of 15 December 2017 on administrative appeals 362/2014 and 101/2018 of 7 February 2018, on administrative appeal 354/2014, declared the nullity of Decree 97/2014 of 8 July adopting the Regulations on the Binjocs lottery and amending Decree 240/2004 of 30 March adopting the Catalogue of games and bets authorised in Catalonia and criteria applicable to the related planning.

This has resulted in the withdrawal of the terminals where this game was played from all gambling establishments in Catalonia that had been authorised to market it.

While in Catalonia this game (Binjocs) was jointly organised, managed and marketed by the Autonomous gambling and betting entity (EAJA) of the Generalitat, in parallel, the rest of the autonomous regions developed different variants of type B amusement machines, specially intended for gambling establishments, such as B1, B2, B3 and B4, which are currently fully consolidated within the range of gambling products.

The withdrawal of Binjocs terminals in Catalonia has resulted in the companies authorised to operate them losing a product from their product range, and therefore having to compete under unfair conditions with other companies in the other autonomous regions that can offer this product, hence the need to introduce new variants in this group of amusement machines.

Currently, Article 8 of Decree 23/2005 of 22 February adopting the Regulations on gambling and amusement machines already regulates special type B machines for amusement arcades, and it is said type B machines intended for amusement arcades, bingo halls and casinos (hotels, restaurants and the like are excluded) that are required to satisfy the requirements of Articles 6 and 7 of the aforementioned Decree 23/2005, and that also have the specialities in Article 8.

The new games covered by this draft decree are not a new type of amusement machine but a variant of the special type B machines for amusement arcades that already exist and are regulated by Article 8 of Decree 23/2005. Specifically, the regulatory amendment enables these new variants to increase the maximum stakes that can be bet and to pay out higher prizes, as well as the simultaneous undertaking of a greater total number of games.