Online gaming domains blocked by Russian State Agency

Back in February, the Roskomnadzor agency decided they would be acceding to government requests for a stronger control on player access to unauthorized online gaming sites. It was on Thursday that Bookamersrating.ru released a report stating that Roskomnadzor had blocked several sites that belonged to operators in Russia as well abroad.

The blocking of online gaming domains began back in September, towards the end of the month. Most domains were blocked though over the past few days. The newer sites to be blocked that are not based in Russia include888Poker, bwin.party, Ladbrokes, Titan Poker, Unibet and Betway.

Bookmakers in Russia were not left out in the banning of domains. Included in the national blocked sites were brands such as 1xbet, TrioBet, Favbet and Fonbet. Online domains of casino affiliates have also been blocked, according to the official register of banned sites.

The domains included in the blockage were also part of a court decision in Russia that goes back as far as 2013. Fonbet was charged back in February of last year and it was in March of 2014 that Russia published a list of unauthorized online gambling domains that were blacklisted.

It could be that this move to block domains is an effort for Russia to begin offering online gambling regulations. The country may have cleared out the sites that are not authorized to begin preparing for official licensing of the activity.