Lithuania’s online gambling operators have agreed to curtail their marketing efforts during the COVID-19 lockdown after ignoring earlier requests from the country’s gambling regulator.

In mid-March, Lithuania’s government declared a country-wide quarantine to reduce further spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. The quarantine was scheduled to last through April 27 and the country’s Gaming Control Authority (GCA) ordered all land-based gambling venues to observe the closure order.

The country’s seven licensed online gambling operators – including Olympic Entertainment Group, Optibet and Betsson’s Betsafe brand – found themselves holding a temporary oligopoly, a privilege the GCA warned them not to abuse. The GCA urged its licensees to observe the guidance jointly issued by multiple European regulatory bodies for responsible advertising during the pandemic.

The GCA claimed to have got no response from its licensees regarding these recommendations, and further claimed to have notice an uptick in online gambling advertising on sports news sites. On April 6, the GCA again contacted its licensees, demanding confirmation that they would abide by the socially responsible recommendations.