Nordic online gambling operator Betsson AB has called on the European Union’s trade watchdogs to prevent the Netherlands from taking enforcement action against the company’s Dutch-focused brands.

For years now, the Netherlands has been prepping new online gambling legislation, although legislators have yet to completely agree on how best to proceed and the expectation is that a regulated market won’t arrive until H2 2018 at the earliest.

That hasn’t stopped the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) regulatory body from taking aggressive action against online operators it deems to be serving Dutch punters without permission. Betsson, which operates the Dutch-facing Oranje and Kroon brands, is now arguing that the KSA lacks the legal justification for taking such action.

In a statement published on its website last Friday, Betsson notes that the European Commission (EC) suspended infringement proceedings against the Netherlands a decade ago based on the country’s pledge to adopt an online gambling policy more respectful of EU rules regarding open trade between member states.