Bulgaria gambling advertising ban bill targets online platforms and hosting providers

The proposed legislation shifts the regulatory burden from gambling operators to the broader digital infrastructure, including search engines and hosting providers. By removing the 'passive-transmission' defense for providers earning ad revenue, the bill forces tech platforms to take an active role in content moderation or risk direct legal penalties. This move reflects a growing European trend of using the Digital Services Act framework to tighten local vice laws across digital borders. Industry observers should monitor the National Revenue Agency’s monthly violation reports to gauge how strictly the 12-hour removal window is enforced against international tech entities.

Bulgaria's proposed gambling advertising ban arrives amid a broader European wave of restrictions on vice-related marketing. In the Netherlands, a total ban on untargeted online gambling advertising took effect in July 2023, prohibiting ads on television, radio, and public spaces while still permitting targeted digital marketing to consumers aged 24 and older. Belgium went further in 2023, implementing a near-complete prohibition on gambling ads across all media channels, with limited exceptions for licensed operators on their own websites. These precedents suggest Bulgaria's Democratic Bulgaria legislators are drawing on an established regulatory playbook that has already been tested in other EU markets.

The enforcement architecture proposed in the Bulgarian bill, particularly the 12-hour takedown mandate for hosting providers and search engines, mirrors mechanisms already embedded in the EU Digital Services Act. Under the DSA, very large online platforms must act on illegal content notifications within defined timeframes, and national authorities can issue removal orders with binding deadlines. The European Commission's enforcement actions under the DSA have already compelled platforms to adjust content moderation practices, establishing legal precedent for holding intermediaries liable when they fail to remove flagged content promptly. Bulgaria's National Revenue Agency, which would oversee monthly violation reporting under the new bill, would join a growing cohort of national regulators using DSA-aligned tools to enforce sector-specific content rules.

The commercial implications for digital advertising ecosystems are significant. Gambling operators collectively spent an estimated 2.4 billion euros on digital advertising across EU markets in 2025, according to industry estimates from the European Gaming and Betting Association. When Italy implemented its advertising ban in 2019 under the Decreto Dignità, licensed operators reported a measurable shift toward affiliate marketing and organic search traffic as paid channels closed off. If Bulgaria's bill passes, the 12-hour removal window for hosting providers and the explicit liability for platforms earning ad revenue from illegal gambling content would create compliance obligations that extend well beyond Bulgarian-licensed operators to any intermediary serving Bulgarian users.