This white paper discusses the recent regulation of online gaming in France and its implications for gaming operators.
As a leading provider of managed hosting and associated services to the global gaming industry, Continent 8 Technologies delivers best-in-class hosting solutions across multiple geographies to support the ever increasing regulatory challenges as our industry matures.
Having already established several gaming provider environments in France for our customers, Continent 8 can provide your organisation with a viable and timely entry into the gaming market in France.
Continent 8 Technologies provides state-of-the-art co-location and managed hosting services to the online gaming industry.
Continent 8 customers benefit from its continued investment in advanced data centres, high quality networks and online technologies.
Continent 8 has multiple centres of excellence around the world including Isle of Man, France, Malta, Singapore and Kahnawake, Montreal, and provides truly global service capability to our clients regardless of geography.
ICT Role in 21st Century Education & its Challenges.pptx
Provisioning gaming services in france with continent 8 technologies white paper
1. Isle of Man | London | France | Malta | Singapore | Kahnawake
Don’t let the regulatory
challenges put you off
your game
Provisioning Gaming Services
in France
with Continent 8 Technologies
2010
2. Continent 8 Technologies provides state-of-the-art
co-location and managed hosting services to the
online gaming industry. Our customers benefit from our
continued investment in advanced data centres, high
quality networks and online technologies. Continent
8 has multiple centres of excellence around the world
including Isle of Man, France, Malta, Singapore and
Kahnawake and provides truly global service capability
to our clients regardless of geography.
3. Overview costs in terms of marketing and customer acquisition as
they compete with providers already established in the
marketplace
This white paper discusses the recent regulation of
online gaming in France and its implications for gaming
operators. As a leading provider of managed hosting
and associated services to the global gaming industry,
Continent 8 Technologies delivers best-in-class hosting The benefits of entering the French market early include:
solutions across multiple geographies to support the ever-
increasing regulatory challenges as our industry matures.
• Taking part in a new market that carries with it first
mover advantage
Having already established several gaming provider
environments in France for our customers, Continent 8 can
provide your organisation with a viable and timely entry • Establishing loyal customer bases due to the newly
into the gaming market in France. introduced extensive compliance and regulatory
framework
New French Gaming Legislation came into force in
April 2010 • Capitalising on the wave of publicity associated with
the introduction of ARJEL
The law legalising online gambling in France was
introduced in April 2010, as result the French Agency for • Gaining early expertise and the ability to move
Online Gaming Regulation, l’Autorité de régulation des quickly with respect to other markets which
jeux en ligne (ARJEL), was formed in order to ensure introduce frameworks similar to ARJEL
compliance and to oversee the industry. The opening up
of the French online gaming industry has led to a surge of For more information about ARJEL and the French
gaming service providers preparing to enter the market in e-gaming legislation please visit:
order to achieve first mover success in what is estimated
to be a €1.2 Billion market. France is imposing stringent www.arjel.fr
regulations for providers by introducing complex gaming
compliance requirements (regulated by ARJEL) that will
help it not only monitor and protect end customers, but
also introduce controls that aid the taxation of gaming.
For gaming operators, the regulatory framework managed
by ARJEL represents a huge challenge, not only in terms
of implementation and management but also for speed to
market. It is no secret that being a first mover in this and
subsequent new markets is of immense value to those
providers who achieve it.
It is likely that late arrivals to the market will face increased
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4. What are the requirements set out by ARJEL? The online gaming market which opened to competition
concerns three distinct sectors:
In essence, the new regulations comprise a number of • horse race betting
aspects that providers or operators will need to comply with
in order to receive and maintain a license for their chosen • sports betting
game verticals e.g. Poker, Horse Racing and Sports
Betting. Some of these elements are shown below in Fig 1. • games of skill (poker)
Outline of ARJEL’S Role and Mission The ARJEL is central to the regulation designed to serve
the objectives of the government in terms of gaming laws
and regulations.
The ARJEL is the Independent Administrative Authority
(IAA) set up as part of the French Online Gaming
regulation No. 2010-476 of 12 May 2010. ARJEL’S Mission
Taking into account the European Union’s directive on The ARJEL’s mission is to:
online gaming and the individual countries interpretation, • issue licenses and ensure compliance by operators
France has opted for a new type of regulation in Europe
with the formation of a legislative system which seeks to • protect vulnerable populations, fight against
ensure: addiction
• protection of players and vulnerable section of the • ensure the safety and fairness of the gaming
population operations
• safety and fairness of the gaming sites through the • fight against illegal sites
supervision of gaming activities and the recognition
to operate benefiting organisers of sporting events • fight against fraud and money laundering
• prevention of fraud (illegal sites in particular) and
(Translated from the ARJEL website - http://www.arjel.fr/-Role-et-missions-.html )
money laundering
• preservation of tax resources: levy on bets
redistributed, in part, to horse racing and sporting
events
Gaming Operator ARJEL Governance Implication for
Requirement Role Operators
License Operators in the French Fulfill all the criteria set out in
Obtain and maintain license Jurisdiction the gaming laws
Separate licenses required for Monitor and capture activities Maintain each license as per
each game vertical of providers and end users the requirement
Must operate .fr from within Control and audit usage to Establish .fr and front end in
jurisdiction ensure compliance France
Implement required digital
Implement controls and suitable Protect and serve best interest
authentication, capture and
compliance technology of citizens and gov
data archiving technology
Fig 1. Requirements set out by ARJEL 3
5. As an operator, what are your options? Alternatively Partner with a global partner such as
Continent 8, who has established regional capabilities
in multiple global jurisdictions that can serve both global
The key to entering and expanding your presence in highly
and local providers alike in their chosen target markets
regulated jurisdictions is all about the ability to adapt
and manage your portfolio to suit the various trends and
requirements within each market. As an example, in the By establishing the ability to operate efficiently in terms
case of France and ARJEL, operators will be expected of technology management and organisational flexibility,
to implement advanced technological and organisational operators can retain the competitive edge while reducing
controls that will allow ARJEL to audit, monitor and control complexities associated with rapid growth and over-
all gaming activity within France. Furthermore, once ARJEL burdening of resources. In the case of ARJEL type
has granted a license (multiple licenses may be required environments, providers will need to be able to handle
depending on gaming portfolio), the burden and cost of multiple markets, each having their own requirements
ongoing compliance will rest solely with the operator. This going forward. It is therefore essential that you choose
ongoing burden and expenditure raises other important a hosting partner who can deliver solutions created
issues for operators, such as how do you, as an operator, specifically for your industry across multiple jurisdictions.
manage and quantify the potential risk versus the expected Today Continent 8 is the only global hosting partner with
return. over ten years experience working exclusively within the
gaming sector.
Putting aside the questions of market sizing and risk
reward, there are a number of approaches that can help
operators establish jurisdictional compliance as follows:
1. Investing in new technologies and expanding
organisational footprints in order to manage the
additional compliance requirements for the new
markets
2. Partnering with multiple service providers in each
jurisdiction offering distinct solutions that serve that
target market along with any regulatory requirements
“We are thrilled by this strategic partnership as we aim at
becoming the number 1 data centre for online gaming operators in
France. Continent 8’s extensive knowledge of the online gaming
market and its technical expertise of online gaming hosting
combined with our connectivity, security and business continuity
expertise, makes our partnership one of the best options for online
gaming operators wishing to enter the French market.”
Gilles Pecqueron
Communication and Marketing Manager
Telehouse France
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6. Continent 8 Technologies’ capabilities in the The core of our strategy is based on providing our
French market customers with the following:
In order to meet the challenge faced by operators entering • Assistance in moving quickly into the French market
the French market, Continent 8 has established a strategic by providing physical location supported by the
and exclusive partnership with Telehouse France allowing capability to provide a turnkey coffre forte (Vault)
us to offer a turnkey solution to address all technological solution in conjunction with our partners
requirements as set out by ARJEL. In addition to our
existing global centres of excellence, this newly formed • Access to our global private network that delivers
partnership has allowed Continent 8 to add a hosting low latency connectivity through several Tier 1 IP
facility in Paris to our global portfolio. In order to meet the transit options regardless of where your back-end
requirements of the new gaming regulations, we have also infrastructure resides
established informal relationships with coffre forte (vault)
solution providers which allows Continent 8 to provide
• Complete portfolio of co-location and managed
a unique one stop capability to both existing and new
services to support gaming environments delivered
customers. Continent 8 can provide the hosting solution
on both local and global bases
regardless of which coffre forte provider you decide
to work with. The success of our offering in Telehouse
Magny has been attested to by the operator and network
base already installed in this data centre. In addition this
partnership extends the Continent 8 sales, marketing and
administration capabilities through the creation of a close
and effective working model.
Facilities & Network & Managed Service Knowledge &
Coffre Forte
Presence Connectivity Services Management Resources
Multiple Options
Fig 2. Capability Matrix
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7. Simplified view of the Coffre Forte (vault) requirement
.fr Gaming Customer .fr Front End .anywhere
Located in France Highly Available Front & Back End
Secured & Protected Gaming Provider
Located in France
1 4
9 5
.anywhere could be hosted in
another licensed jurisdiction in
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7
2
8 Europe, including Continent 8’s
established data centres in the
Isle of Man and Malta
Digital Vault
Authen cate
Capture
Maintain
Archive
Fig 3. Coffre forte illustrated
Managed Services • Database Management
• Monitoring
• Backup Management
Continent 8 provides an integrated suite of Managed
Services that can meet the mission critical requirements
of your online business. Customers can select from our In addition, Continent 8 can offer services such as
complete portfolio of Managed Services including: Distributed Denial of Service mitigation, Disaster Recovery
and Content Delivery to help providers meet further
requirements set out under the new online gaming laws in
• Network Management
France.
• System Management
• Power • Full or half rack
• Redundant IP connectivity
Co-location • Technical support
Fully Managed Infrastructure Hosting and Network Management
Global infrastructure • Full OS Management • Strategically Situated Data Centres
• System Performance Monitoring • Private Global Network
and network • System Patch Management • Bandwidth Management
• Content Delivery Network • Data Base Management
• Application Performance Monitoring • Cluster Management
Application Services • Service Monitoring • Storage Management
• Backup & Recovery • Co-location services
• System fail over • Contingency Services
Disaster Recovery • Tape & Media Management • Compliance Management
• DDoS Protection Services • Antivirus & Malware Protection
• Managed Firewall • Intrusion Detection Services
Security
• Infrastructure Deployment Services • Regulation Compliance Consulting
• Security Consulting and Reviews • Contingency Planning Services
Professional Services • Professional Services
Technology Migration Services • Compliance Management
• Solutions Architecture and Design
Fig 4. Hosting Services Framework 6
8. Continent 8 Technologies’ Co-Location Power & Electricity. Power is supplied to site by two
Facility in Telehouse 3 dedicated 15 MW lines originating from two separate EDF
substations. In the case of a grid based power outage
the site houses 6 generators of 2 MVA each (tested
Overview. Telehouse France is the longest established monthly). All the electrical equipment is a minimum of N+1
provider of reliable and secure data centre facilities in configuration.
France. The combination of over 18 years experience,
financial stability and ongoing investment in their facilities
gives their clients ultimate reliability and business Communications & Connectivity. The Continent 8 facility
continuity. www.telehouse.net in Telehouse 3 is fully interconnected back into our global
network backbone (see “Fig. 6 – Continent 8 Network”
on page 8). Continent 8 has dual redundant Gig-E paths
The Telehouse 3 facility is a former European Aeronautic between this facility and Telehouse 2 in central Paris and
Defence and Space (EADS) military site located in Magny- takes connectivity from a large number of Tier 1 and other
les-Hameaux. It was originally constructed in the 1980s on carriers.
a 65,000 square metres (16 acres) site and benefits from
its legacy of providing outstanding physical security and
rock solid construction. These attributes made it the perfect Environment & Fire.
choice for the construction of Continent 8’s chosen data Fire safety system; Category-A fire detection system
centre. with an automatic nitrogen extinguishing system.
Air conditioning; 8 x 1,150 kW cooling units (N+1)
and 105 kW air conditioning cabinets (N+1).
Location & Building. The site itself is located in the Île-
de-France region, in the Chevreuse valley, 25 km to the
South-West of central Paris. The site is located in a non- Security. Permanent multi-stage security protocols are
flood hazard area and is not located close to either nuclear implemented on site providing distinct levels of access
facilities or airport flight path/approaches. Telehouse 3 dependant on role and requirement. Access is granted
consists of approximately 15,000 m² floor space (see using both photo badge and biometric recognition systems.
diagram below) . The complete facility is also monitored using 24 hour CCTV
systems which include infrared capability.
Rack Space. Continent 8 operates its own private suite
facility within Telehouse 3 facility with additional capacity Certifications. ISO 9001, ISO 27001 and ISO 14001
planned based on Continent 8’s requirements going
forward. Up to 5 kVA per rack is available within the suite.
Fig 5. Telehouse Magny Facility
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9. Continent 8 Technologies global network
C8 Co-location Centre
C8 Peering Point
Fig 6. Continent 8 Network
Conclusion Call Continent 8 Technologies today to learn more and to
find out how we can keep you at the top of your game!
Continent 8’s compliance management service provides
your business with the ability to move quickly into new Contact Information
markets (such as France) by providing a compliance
foundation from which to quickly adopt and utilise.
For further information or to contact our sales team
Continent 8’s approach as a service and delivery partner
please email:
ensures that you achieve early mover advantage and
reliable hosting solutions as new markets open up. sales@continent8.com
Our goal is to build long term partnerships that provide
our customers with the capability to compete in the
online gaming industry’s highly competitive and regulated
environments both now and in the future. Continent 8’s
global network of data centres has been strategically
located to serve our gaming industry partners. As an
influential presence in the industry we continuously work
to share our experience and knowledge as part of the
services we deliver which truly differentiates us from our
more generic competitors.
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10. Continent 8 House | Pulrose Road | Douglas | IM2 1AL | Isle of Man
Tel. +44 1264 678 888 | Fax. +44 1624 679 888
www.continent8.com