The ADM, Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency, will launch a new central complaints portal for online gambling disputes on 10 September.
The launch of the new portal was announced by the ADM on 3 August, as the agency completes a further directive of the reorganisation of Italy’s online gambling sector, focused on strengthening consumer protection and player safety.
Named the “Portale delle segnalazioni”, the ADM has created a central system to track disputes between customers and licensed online gambling operators.
Under the new requirements, operators have 72 working hours to respond to a customer complaint, with the period calculated according to working days and excluding public holidays.
Should a customer fail to reach a resolution or believe that the response provided by the operator is unsatisfactory, they will be able to escalate the matter for review by the ADM.
Users of the portal must register complaints using SPID or Italy’s electronic identity card (CIE) and provide details of their player account and the operator concerned.
On complaints submitted through the portal, the ADM underlines that it will not intervene during the initial proceedings, which must first be handled directly between the customer and the licensee.
The ADM can become involved where an operator fails to respond or where the customer considers its response unsatisfactory or unable to resolve the dispute.
Upon intervention, the ADM can review the operator’s response and launch a supplementary investigation, requiring the licensee to provide further information within another 72-hour period.
The agency can subsequently issue operational directions to the operator or pursue further measures where a breach of licensing obligations is identified.
Once the ADM provides its final response, the complaint is considered closed and cannot be resubmitted.
Italy prioritises consumer protection
Following the launch of the complaints portal, ADM will continue its collaboration with state-owned IT services and cybersecurity group SOGEI to develop a “protective shield” for Italy’s regulated online gambling market.
A further project of the gambling reorganisation, Italy seeks to develop a comprehensive cybersecurity framework protecting consumers from engaging with unlicensed online gambling operators.
The project has been endorsed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) as Italy seeks to protect the significant tax contribution generated by its gambling sector while the market undergoes a rapid transition towards online platforms.
Funding has been supported by the launch of Italy’s new licensing regime for online gambling, which saw 48 operators secure new concessions priced at €7m each.
Resources generated by the new regime are intended to support ADM’s increased oversight of online gambling, a priority outlined by agency Director Roberto Alesse.
Yet, while Italy progresses with the reorganisation of its online gambling sector, the government continues to stall on the modernisation of land-based gambling.
This week, the Meloni government removed the Reorganisation Decree for land-based gambling from its remaining parliamentary agenda for 2026.
The decision followed Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s rejection of the proposed settlement covering licensing terms and nationwide rules for land-based gambling, negotiated between MEF and Italy’s autonomous regions.
Attention now turns to whether negotiations will be revived in 2027, as the Meloni government prioritises the upcoming budget cycle and an increasingly political agenda ahead of Italy’s next general election.