The Irish High Court in the case of Seamus Mulvaney -v- The Sporting Exchange Limited t/a Betfair & Others; Ellen Martin -v- The Sporting Exchange Limited t/a Betfair & Another, High Court, 18 March 2009 [2009] IEHC 133, delivered its first ruling regarding the scope of the E-Commerce Directive and the relevant Irish Regulations.
The Court stated that whilst the E-Commerce Directive and the Regulations do not apply to gambling activities, they do cover peripheral activities, such as the running of a chatroom.
Accordingly, a betting company that offers its customers a chatroom, may avail of the protection of the E-Commerce Directive and Regulations.
It is understood, that the two bookmakers in question, Seamus Mulvaney and Ellen Martin, who felt that they had been libelled in the Betfair forum, will now appeal the decision in the Irish Supreme Court.
