Following on a lengthy legal case between Microgaming powered Piggs Peak online casino belonging to a Swaziland-based company, Casino Enterprises and the state of South Africa represented by its National Gambling Board, a final battle was fought between them in the Appeal Court in Bloemfontein, after Piggs Peak had lost their case in the lower courts.
The Appeal Court rejected the appeal of online casinos ending the long drawn litigation with finality. Casino Enterprises made a statement to the effect that with immediate effect, Casino Enterprises (Pty) Limited, trading as Piggs Peak Casino, Piggs Peak Poker, Piggs Peak Bingo and Volcanic Gold Casino would no longer be accepting bets from any South African players. Anyone with a positive balance in their Piggs Peak Casino account was asked to make a withdrawal and to make a note that their casino would only be accessible to players outside South Africa’s borders.
The case revolved around the fact that online casinos felt that online gambling takes place on the servers of the operator and not on the hardware of the player and that because the servers were located in Swaziland, where online gambling is legal, Piggs Peak claimed that the legal position of online gambling in South Africa was immaterial.
However, the Appeal Court ruled that the online gambling takes place where the player is and not where the casino’s servers are located.
Since the ruling, South African online players can only hope that the Gambling Act in South Africa will be amended as until then, online casinos will remain illegal in South Africa no matter where the servers of the operator are located.
