Luiz Felipe Maia (Lawyer)
Two bills intend to regulate gambling activity in Brazil: PLS 186/2014, currently in the Senate Constitution and Justice Commission for deliberation, and PL 442/1991, which is waiting in the House of Representatives.
Those who
followed the discussions of PL 442/1991 in the Special Commission on the Regulatory
Framework for Gaming in Brazil of the Deputies Chamber witnessed two major
conflicts: the first, already expected, among those opposed and in favor of
regulation. The other, even more intense, among interest groups: defenders of
popular local "jogo do bicho”, bingos, street machines, jockey clubs, major Las
Vegas casinos and regional casinos. The result was an extremely confusing text,
without any cohesion, which should be corrected for any chance of approval.
This conflict has not ended with the approval of PL 442/91 by the Commission
and has had repercussions in discussions in the Senate and in all the
interactions between representatives of the private sector with the Public
Power. As a result, we have witnessed the weakening of efforts to regulate and
open spaces to defend Caixa's monopoly for sports betting and for any gaming
operation on internet.
We are trying to move from a closed market to a broad and general regulation in
a country with no tradition in the gaming industry. It is an extremely
ambitious mission, with no precedent in other markets. Necessarily, the
government will have to make choices and prioritize some industries in relation
to others, defining a reasonable chronology of implementation according to an
economic modeling to be defined.
This means that, invariably, there will be unhappy interest groups, which in
addition to those already naturally opposed to the activity, may make it
unfeasible to approve any bill. All interested are faced with a "Sofia
Choice": Join efforts to approve the possible text, which will probably
leave several dissatisfied, or adopt a suicidal strategy of "or all or
nothing."
In this type of situation, the alternative that offers the best collective
result is to identify common interests. In the case, regardless of the group,
it is in everyone's interest that society in general will have a more positive
image of the gaming industry. This common public relations effort is
indispensable to create the political environment necessary for the approval of
any bill and should be well coordinated to achieve its objective.
The gaming topic is currently present in the main soap opera of Rede Globo (one
of TV main networks), with a compulsive poker player. It is the golden
opportunity to bring the discussion to the people's agenda and to change the
public perception. But this will only be possible if the industry unites around
this purpose.
Luiz Felipe Maia
Luiz Felipe Maia is an internationally recognized award-winning gaming lawyer
and invited to speak at the major gaming events in the world. He is a founding
partner of FYMSA Advogados, with headquarters in Sao Paulo and international
presence.
