Pocholo

What is Pocholo?

Andreas Braun, owner of four arcades in Wiesbaden, filed an objection and constitutional complaint against the tax rate in April last year according to local reporting. He argued that the tax rise had provided a ‘strangling’ effect to business and that it consumed operator profits.

According to a high court ruling from over a decade ago, the tax rise cannot be allowed to rise to the point of ‘consuming livelihoods’. 

“If the tax burden alone makes it impossible to establish the occupation of slot machine operators as the economic basis of one’s livelihood within the municipality,” the ruling said. 

What is Pocholo?

When asked his view on what will happen next, Weizer declined to comment, saying: “It’s very interesting. But as I’m sure you can understand, we are not going to answer any questions on litigation.

“We are under legal privilege and confidentiality rules, and we can’t simply take questions on the legal situation. We said what we needed to say following the Spectrum report being released earlier this week. So, that’s all I can say at this point in time.

“I have a lot to say, but I can’t.”

How to play Pocholo

Within several years, however, the partnership had soured.

In 2012, Sanum and Lao Holdings, an Aruba-based company created to hold the investors’ interests in Sanum, accused Laos of trying to force them out of the country after Savan Vegas had become successful.

They took the dispute to international arbitration, claiming Laos had violated investment treaties protecting their businesses.