Playtech partnered with the Czech Republic's first licensed online gaming operator, Fortuna, to make its contents and software available in the country.
This week it was announced that the games have now been launched in the local market, after Fortuna was granted a license to operate technical games by the Czech Ministry of Finance.
"We are delighted to be the first supplier to go live in the Czech Republic with our pioneering omni-channel platform technology and best-performing casino content and to further expand Fortuna's offering in this newly regulated market," noted Shimon Akad, Playtech's chief operating officer.
Playtech and Fortuna Partnership
Playtech inked a deal with Fortuna in August last year, and since then the groups have been in collaboration about a launch in the Czech Republic online casino market, as well as Romania, Poland and Slovakia.
Founded in Prague in 2009, Fortuna is considered an industry giant in Central and Eastern Europe.
According to the general manager of Fortuan CZ, David Vanek, the group is proud to be the first company in the Czech Republic to have met the demanding conditions defined by the new legislation and to be granted a license as a result.
"Broadening our product range to complement our sports betting offering is a major priority. We are therefore very pleased that our customers will be the first to play online roulette and casino games in full compliance with Czech legislation," he said. "Granting this license means that Fortuna has become the first multi-product (sports and games) gaming company in the Czech market. Our new online casino and aggressive games expansion is crucial to growing the business and means the Fortuna product offering will be comparable to some of Europe's largest operators."
New Czech Gambling Laws
From the beginning of 2017, any operators who wish to offer their gambling services in the country need to obtain a license from gambling authorities. Failure to do so could lead to prosecution.
Operators also face a tough tax regime, needing to pay 23% on gross gaming revenue for sports betting and lotteries, as well as 35% for RNG casino games. In addition, they need to pay the standard 19% corporate tax rate.