The monopolisation of the Norwegian slot machine market

In contrast to most of the European countries in the late 1990 and early 2000s, Norway monopolised the slot machine market in terms of making the 100% state-owned company, Norsk Tipping, to the only supplier of slot machines. Even though a lot of attention has been paid to the monopolisation at a European level, little is known about this process. To address this knowledge gap, this report will present the monopoly story as it has been told by different actors involved in the process: authorities, organisations, businesses, therapists, self-help groups, interest groups, researchers, and the press. The aim is to identify the factors influencing this process, both positively and negatively, and, as such, to reveal some of the structure of interests, knowledge and power that made the monopolisation possible. The research shows that the monopolisation of the Norwegian slot machine market is a story about a state and a company that know what they want—and take what they want, first of all by making use of the power that has been given to them through formal political channels, but also by making alliances with competent businesses and organisations working to combat a ‘shared enemy’: the private operators and the online businesses offering their games from abroad. Although many actors are worried about the development of the monopoly, they are positive about it insofar as it manages to keep the number of problem gamblers at a low level