Brazil: President of National Telecommunications Agency proposes adjustment to law regulating bookmakers

The president of Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency), Carlos Baigorri, has proposed adjustments to the legislation that regulates bookmakers in Brazil to the Bets Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI). Members of the CPI summoned Baigorri to provide clarification. Authorities have not yet set a date for the deposition, but expect it to take place next week.  

The president of Anatel suggested changes to the section of the law that deals with digital blocking. The adjustments seek to include mechanisms allowing the agency to block illegal websites from January, when the official betting market is set to launch.

The proposal foresees the inclusion of DNS operators (internet addresses) and CDNs (content distribution networks), as well as systems such as VPNs, often used to mask connections.

He cited the example of the blocking of a social application ordered by the Federal Supreme Court, in which it was necessary to negotiate with Cloudflare, a VPN company. Therefore, the company would need to carry out voluntary blocking to avoid disconnecting all its customers in Brazil.

"The way the betting law was approved, Anatel will not have the power to remove the connection of approximately 5,200 illegal websites, as requested by the Ministry of Treasury," argued Baigorri, as per an iGaming Brazil report.

Senator Eduardo Girão

Meanwhile, Senator Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE) called for urgency in the processing of his bill (PL 3.405/2023), which seeks to restrict advertising for sports betting. The proposal wants to ban the participation of sports teams, celebrities, and commentators in advertising campaigns.

"PL 3,405, of 2023, drastically restricts abusive betting advertising, banning figures that could attract young people to the world of gambling," explained Girão. Finally, he compared the situation to the impact of old cigarette advertisements.