It's still being actively worked on for the finer details but essentially they are auctioning 15 local casino licenses off during 2026/7 much like our Canadian players here deal with. It's not illegal for players here to play elsewhere even after it comes into action.
Ours is set to include:
Mandatory 18+ ID checks(unsure if on deposit or on withdrawal like standard)
No autoplay, limits on session length and timeouts after an hours play etc. Possibly as far as what the UK has in this regards which is extreme.
Limitations on bonus offers(upto 200%/$100 max incentives etc), not sure if it will impact reel races/tournaments/on casino promos etc but likely will
~17% share of gross gaming revenue(total bets minus total payouts essentially) so 17% of that revenue before the casinos costs(staff, licenses, banking/payment services etc) are even taken into account. If a site like leovegas pragmatic is 94% RTP today throw in a 17% GGR share what would it be after? As bad as brick and mortar slots at the pub or casino
Theres also stuff like they must provide Maori support(official NZ language but the staffing costs for this will be insane if they can't use AI translation for a 24/7 operation)
Casinos only need 7.5M capital to bid, no player protection if one is insolvent and can't payout players despite the Gov's 17% GGR share from casinos
Theres some future gambling law changes passed in my country which are very unfavourable so it's possible, that being said I suspect many licensed casinos would ignore Gov requests to restrict/block our players as they likely can't be fined/taken to court where they operate.
Will be interesting to see, no real interest in playing local sites because they will be like UK ones with no autospins and time restrictions(time outs) etc.
I have been playing slots for 10 years now. Started in the beginning of 2016. I have already stopped playing slots since May this year due to two reasons. Firstly my favourite deposit methods were restricted for my region and the other reason is the weakening of my local currency against usd and eur.
I only plan to play for contests purposes as I get some of my money back.