In terms of Legal Notice 271 of 2016, the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has exempted fantasy sports games operators from the requirement to obtain a license. The new LN was issued on the 1st August 2016, by means of which fantasy sports games operators can now provide their services online through a simple notification to the MGA, without the need to go through a licensing process.
This follows the position paper on Digital Games of Skill and Prize issued by the MGA in December 2015. In this paper, the MGA highlighted the distinction between games of skill and games of chance, the latter of which require a licence until the applicable Act and Regulations due to the high risk presented to the consumer. Games of skill still warrant appropriate regulatory intervention, despite having a negligible element of risk for players as opposed to games of chance.
