As part of the evolution towards specific NPS legislation and having seen that the control of individual NPS emergeing in the market was not enough to counter rapid emergence of NPS, in 2011 the Austrian government introduced a definition of groups of substances for the first time, specifically of synthetic cannabinoids (BGBl II Nr. 158/2011). Other groups of NPS emerged in the market and there was a proliferation of head shops and head shops selling NPS on the internet which prompted the response of the goverment by issuing specific legislation on NPS, i.e. the NPS law.