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APCW Online Gaming News Feed
Online gaming news from the Association of Players, Casinos & Webmasters.
Last Update: Friday September 19, 2008 01:26:00 AM
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September 19th, 2008 - UltimateBet Sues Over "Super User" Cheat
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Casino, Online Poker
MSNBC - Allegations that cheaters manipulated the software powering a leading Internet poker site so they could see their opponents' hole cards have triggered a $75 million claim against a Canadian company, msnbc.com has learned. The alleged subterfuge on UltimateBet.com — one of the 10 top poker sites — is the biggest known case of fraud targeting an Internet gambling site and its customers, according to the company that owns the site. It is similar to a case of cheating that occurred last year on UltimateBet’s sister site, AbsolutePoker.com, but this time the thieves ran the scheme for far longer — at least from January 2005 to January 2008, it said. Word of the $75 million U.S. claim ($80 million Canadian) — the first indication of the scope of the alleged cheating — emerged this week when msnbc.com contacted a court-appointed liquidator overseeing the voluntary dismemberment of Excapsa Software Inc. of Toronto, which formerly owned and licensed the poker software to UltimateBet and other gambling sites. The claim was filed by Blast-Off Ltd. of Malta, a private company that currently has an ownership interest in Ultimate Bet. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday September 19, 2008 01:26:00 AM September 18th, 2008 - EU Gambling Firms See WTO Case Coming Against U.S
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Online Casino
Reuters - A dispute over U.S. enforcement actions against European Union online gambling companies could be headed to the World Trade Organization soon, an European industry group said on Wednesday. "It looks very much as if this matter will ... be sent to the WTO at the end of the commission's investigation," Lode Van Den Hende, outside counsel for the Remote Gambling Association, told reporters as EU officials were in Washington to probe U.S. Justice Department enforcement actions. That would open the door for possible European sanctions on the United States, although it could take years for any case to make its way through the WTO litigation system. An EU trade official, who briefed reporters on condition he not be identified, said he expected the European Commission to decide by the end of the year whether to start a WTO case. The EU team, which met on Tuesday with representatives of the U.S. Trade Representative's office, the Justice Department and other U.S. agencies, will make its recommendations in a publicly available report in November, he said. European Internet gambling companies lost billions of euros in market value after the U.S. Congress moved in 2006 to shut down the U.S. market by making it illegal for banks and credit card companies to make payments to online gambling sites. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday September 19, 2008 01:23:16 AM September 17th, 2008 - Europe Examines US Gambling Policy
Category: Gaming / Casinos, Online Gambling, News, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - n its anxiety to impose a nationwide ban on online gambling, the US has soured relations with the European Union. The issue at stake: removing European online casinos from operating in the US. EU officials have slammed the move as discriminatory practice against EU-based companies. The US is desperate to withdraw from its free trade commitments to permit foreign competition from taking a slice of domestic gambling revenues. A European Union delegation is leaving for Washington, DC to question legal and trade representatives about the Justice Department's stance on Internet gambling. Even as European online operations are leaving the US market, the Remote Gaming Association - which represents EU online casinos - submitted written inquiries into the matter. n its anxiety to impose a nationwide ban on online gambling, the US has soured relations with the European Union. The issue at stake: removing European online casinos from operating in the US. EU officials have slammed the move as discriminatory practice against EU-based companies. The US is desperate to withdraw from its free trade commitments to permit foreign competition from taking a slice of domestic gambling revenues. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday September 19, 2008 01:08:14 AM September 16th, 2008 - Frank Bill Passes!
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Casino, Online Poker
RGT Online - The movement to regulate online gaming in the U.S. scored its first legislative victory since the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) when The House Financial Services Committee passed Payment Systems Protection Act (PSPA) by a 30-19 vote Tuesday. A similar measure failed to make it out of committee two months ago after a 32-32 vote. The new bill, sponsored by Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Rep Peter King (R-NY), calls on the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department to immediately begin drafting and implementing regulations that prevent sports betting transactions from being processed. But it halts the development of any regulations beyond sports betting until a session that involves an administrative law judge determines exactly what is legal and illegal Internet gambling. "Under this bill, at least the banks will know what is and isn't illegal," Frank said at the markup hearing. "We're asking the Treasury Department to give them a list." (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 16, 2008 04:05:44 PM September 15th, 2008 - Dutch Senate OKs Online Gambling Tax
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Online Casino Reports - Holland's Senate has cleared a bill that would allow the government to place an exorbitant tax on companies offering online gambling, rather than ban them altogether. The bill, which applies to games of chance such as blackjack and craps, may also contain provisions targeting Dutch citizens who win at foreign online gaming sites. It would allow the Dutch government to tax services provided by foreign online operators, companies the government had previously deemed unlawful in order to protect the monopoly of the state-run Holland Casino. Several months ago the Dutch government asked banks to stop providing financial services to specific online casinos, such as Sweden's Unibet and the Dutch company Oranje Casino. Earlier this year the senate narrowly rejected an amendment to the Dutch Betting and Gaming Act that would have given Holland Casino a trial monopoly on online gaming. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday September 15, 2008 05:56:46 PM September 12th, 2008 - Barney Frank Tries Again
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Casino, Online Poker
Las Vegas Review Journal - A new bill by the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee requires federal agencies to define unlawful Internet gambling so banks and other financial institutions can comply with the ban on online wagering. The Department of Treasury and the Federal Reserve would consult the U.S. attorney general’s office in creating a formal process for defining illegal Internet gambling, according to the bill introduced Thursday by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass. The bill is the latest move by Frank to sort out the complications that arose after Congress passed the restrictive gambling law in 2006. The chairman is a staunch opponent of the Internet gambling ban. Federal officials have told lawmakers they are having trouble carrying out the law because it does not clearly define what constitutes illegal gambling over the Internet. In April, Frank introduced legislation to prevent the Treasury and Federal Reserve from crafting the gaming regulations entirely.
Added to Feed: Friday September 12, 2008 05:55:30 PM September 11th, 2008 - USDBet Goes Under
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
InfoPowa News - n trouble since at least August of 2007, USDBet.com appears to have finally bitten the dust, with visitors to the website redirected to the Yahoo.com portal for some weeks and an unknown number of players still awaiting payment. The Futurebet-powered operation told respected sportsbook portal Sports Book Review less than three months ago that it was now under new (but unspecified) management, had taken over its own processing but was using the same software. Manager "James" told SBR: "We are paying out all pending withdrawals, so please redirect players who have contacted you with withdrawal problems to this mailing address: mail@usdbet.com." Unfortunately, this appears to be of little use, as emails sent to that address are reportedly ignored.
Added to Feed: Thursday September 11, 2008 01:26:36 AM September 10th, 2008 - Fortune Affiliates First to be Awarded New eCOGRA 'Affiliate Trust Seal'
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Gambling, Online Poker
PR Web - Fortune Affiliates is the first igaming affiliate program to receive the new eCOGRA "Affiliate Trust Seal". eCOGRA, the independent, non-profit standards authority of the online gaming industry, oversees fair gaming, player protection and responsible operator conduct. Just as the organization's Safe and Fair Seal has identified the most reputable online casinos and poker rooms, the new eCOGRA Affiliate Trust Seal now recognizes affiliate operators that observe the same standards of fairness and excellence. Fortune Affiliates was awarded the Seal after a thorough audit and on-site inspection. "We are extremely honored to receive the very first Affiliate Trust Seal," said a spokesman for Fortune Affiliates. "The process was a tough one, but as our Affiliates have always known, we have always held ourselves to very high standards." (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday September 11, 2008 01:19:10 AM September 10th, 2008 - US DoJ to Pursue Google Regarding PPC Advertising
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Online Casino
Gambling 911 - The US Justice Department, which has aggressively gone after online gambling establishments over the past two years, has yet another big target in mind....the biggest of all perhaps - Google! The Wall Street Journal reports that The Justice Department has quietly hired one of the nation's best-known litigators, former Walt Disney Co. vice chairman Sanford Litvack, for a possible antitrust challenge to Google Inc.'s growing power in advertising. Mr. Litvack's hiring is the strongest signal yet that the U.S. is preparing to take court action against Google and its search-advertising deal with Yahoo Inc. The two companies combined would account for more than 80% of U.S. online-search ads. News of this development sent Google stocks down .5%, or $24.30, to $419.95 in 4 p.m. trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The Wall Street Journal also reported that US lawyers have been deposing witnesses and issuing subpoenas for documents to support a challenge to the deal, lawyers close to the review said. Such efforts don't always mean a case will be brought, however. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 09, 2008 09:15:44 PM September 9th, 2008 - Neteller Reaches Deal wih Born Group
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Casino, Online Poker
Finextra - The Neteller Group (LSE: NLR), the independent global online payments business, and Born Group, the holding company that owns and operates the BornForSports worldwide e-commerce sports-style-fashion marketplace, have signed a five year payment and joint marketing agreement. The agreement provides for the exclusive use of a version of NETELLER Payment Suite inside the BORN Group network of merchants and brands. Included is a co-branded e-wallet to be called BORN EXPRESS powered by NETELLER. With 1 million members worldwide, BORN Group through BornForSports manages a sports lifestyle oriented social network that sells sports-style-fashion goods and services from carefully selected merchants and brands. Via its proprietary marketplace platform, BORN Group takes a commission on each sale and controls the payment processing through its e-wallet BORN EXPRESS powered by NETELLER. Under the five-year contract, BORN Group has agreed to implement the NETELLER Payment Suite across its online merchants and brands network. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 09, 2008 09:16:28 PM September 8th, 2008 - Online Poker Jobs on the Line
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - Not so long ago PartyGaming was the largest online poker room on the Internet. They were racking up record figures in number of players and dollars that were turning every one else green with envy. They seemed to be immune from collapsing economies and gambling bans. Now they too, are feeling the bite.
Founded in 1997, PartyGaming is the world's leading listed online gaming company. In 2004, PartyGaming was the largest IPO on the London Stock Exchange. The group includes a number of secondary brands such as PartyPoker.com and PartyCasino.com, PartyBingo.com, PartyGammon.com, PartyBets.com and financial spread betting through PartyMarkets. But hard times, when they come, can put a damper on even the most thriving of companies. Betting, gaming and gambling are no exception. Following reports of disappointing financial results, PartyGaming, which has its head offices in Gibraltar, has announced it will be laying off up to a third of their Gibraltan staff. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 09, 2008 09:12:33 PM September 8th, 2008 - Second Indictment Against BetonSports' Kaplan & Carruthers
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
GAMBLING911 - The US Government issued a second superseding indictment against BetonSports founder Gary Kaplan on Thursday. The founder of BetonSports.com, Kaplan, now 49, was charged in July of 2006 with 20 felony violations of federal laws including: the Wire Act, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Conspiracy, interstate transportation of gambling paraphernalia, interference with the administration of Internal Revenue laws and tax evasion. Several other individuals including family members were also indicted at that time. The superseding indictment has been issued against them as well, including former CEO David Carruthers. Earlier last month, three plead guilty in the same matter. William Hernan Lenis, his son, Will Lenis, and nephew Manny Lenis entered the pleas in St. Louis. Attorneys for the Miami men said they were minor players caught up in a high-profile investigation. Kaplan and Carruthers have not yet plead in the matter. BetonSports, once the largest offshore sports book catering to the North American bettor, shut down immediately after the indictments were announced. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 09, 2008 09:07:42 PM September 7th, 2008 - Jamie Gold the Keynote Speaker at CAP Barcelona Convention this Month
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
MARKET WIRE - Jamie Gold, the 2006 World Series of Poker Champion, will serve as keynote speaker at the 2008 Casino Affiliate Program (CAP) Euro, an annual online gambling industry conference, in Barcelona, Spain Saturday, September 27, at the Princess Sofia Hotel. Gold, who is best known for winning the single highest payout in sports history at the WSOP main event, more than $12 million, will discuss the current and future state of online poker. "There's no doubt that the explosion of poker around the world is directly connected to the emergence and phenomenal success of online poker," Gold said. "I look forward to participating in discussions on how to maintain online poker's momentum." Dubbed by Bluff Magazine as 'The Poker Philanthropist,' Gold, a former Hollywood talent agent, is one of the most sought after players to help bring in celebrities and raise awareness for numerous high-profile and celebrity poker events including the WSOP 'Ante Up for Africa,' 'All-In for CP' and Randy Couture's 'Operation: All-In' event, and other exclusive tournaments benefiting the Montel Williams' and Michael J. Fox Foundations, to name a few. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday September 09, 2008 09:13:45 PM September 5th, 2008 - California Indian Tribe Offering Onine Casino?
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, Gaming / Casinos, Online Gambling, News
North County Times - A North County tribe is trying to woo gamblers to its Valley Center casino by offering games online. But state gambling regulators said they haven't determined whether the games are legal, and a gambling watchdog group said the games are not properly licensed. The Pauma Band of Mission Indians launched a virtual casino on its Web site last month; it offers video slot machines, table games and card games. The first of its kind in the region, the site allows customers to play games of chance at home for fun or for credits that can be redeemed at the tribe's casino. The Pauma tribe partnered with GameLogic, a Boston-based firm, to provide the online system. As long as no money changes hands, it's perfectly legal, a gambling law professor said. Federal law prohibits online gambling. "If you can't lose, it's not gambling," said professor I. Nelson Rose, who specializes in gambling law at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa. But state gaming officials aren't so sure. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday September 06, 2008 08:21:54 PM September 4th, 2008 - Lawsuit Alleges American Century Invested in Illegal Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Kansas City Business Journal - American Century Cos. Inc. and its directors have been sued in San Francisco by a shareholder who alleges that the company invested in illegal online gambling companies that the federal government cracked down on in 2006. The Kansas City-based mutual fund company’s alleged investments in various online gambling Web sites and the subsequent law enforcement action taken against those sites ruined the investments and caused shareholders to lose value on their shares in the American Century Ultra Fund, according to the complaint. None of the illegal Web sites was named in the suit, but New York lawyer Thomas Sheridan, who represents the plaintiff, New York resident and American Century Ultra Fund investor Laura Seidl, said Thursday that one of the sites was Gibraltar-based Partygaming.com. “What we allege in the complaint is that the defendant caused the Ultra Fund to invest in illegal gambling companies like Partygaming.com,” Sheridan said. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday September 04, 2008 05:46:18 PM September 3rd, 2008 - Playtech Profits Up 90% in First Half of 2008
Category: Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino, News, Gaming / Casinos
Sharecast - Online gaming software group Playtech (LSE: PTEC.L - news) revealed a massive 90% rise in half year pre-tax profit as it sold more online casino games and signed new licensing agreements. The group said adjusted net pre-tax profit surged to $57.82m for the six months ended 30 June compared with net pre-tax profit of $30.43m a year before. Revenue rose to $81.39m from $43.97m. The company has raised £112m through a placing to finance further acquisitions. Today it confirmed that it is looking at acquisition opportunities. "Playtech continues to undertake due diligence in relation to an affiliate company, and so far progress has been satisfactory," the group said in a company statement. Unerlining its confidence in future progress, the interim dividend has been nearly doubled to 12 cents from 6.1 cents the year before. Chief Executive Mor Weizer added, "The company has potential for far more significant growth and its unique business model places it in a strong position. The board looks forward to the future with confidence."
Added to Feed: Thursday September 04, 2008 01:37:43 AM August 29th, 2008 - Party Gaming Profits Fall on Poker Slowdown
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, News, Online Gambling, Gaming / Casinos
Bloomberg.com - PartyGaming Plc, the owner of the PartyPoker.com Web site, slid in London trading after the company said online poker and casino sales fell in the last four weeks. The poker unit had average gross daily revenue of $815,400 in the four weeks ended Aug. 25, down from $855,300 in the prior four weeks, the Gibraltar-based company said today. Average daily casino revenue fell 12 percent in August, from July. PartyGaming declined 2 percent in London. The company said it is still facing competition from rivals that accept wagers from the U.S., where online betting was outlawed in 2006. PartyGaming also reported a first-half profit as gamblers staked money on new games, and costs linked to employee share option payments fell. ``The sharp fall in August casino revenues raises concerns about the business,'' Evolution Securities analyst Ivor Jones said in a note. Evolution has a ``buy'' rating on the stock. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday August 30, 2008 02:14:44 AM August 26th, 2008 - iMega Prepares for the Next Step
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - Online gambling in the United States has been in limbo since the fall of 2006, when the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) went into effect. The Act banned financial institutions in, or operating in, the US, from conducting transactions between American accounts and online gambling venues. For a time, it effectively stifled the American online gambling market. The UIGEA was quickly opposed, and not just by the gambling industry or the banks. Civil libertarians viewed, in many cases, as a threat to personal privacy, and good government advocates disliked the Act's ambiguous language. Online gamers quickly found ways to circumvent the provisions of the Act, and the American Internet gambling market has been making a slow comeback. In Congress, there is currently legislation pending to repeal the controversial UIGEA. All of this is fine, but the UIGEA is still the law of the land; it still prevents in legalized gambling online in the US, and it still hobbles the industry's largest potential market. It's possible that the end is in sight, however. Earlier this year, a Federal Circuit Court Judge gave the Internet Media and Gambling Association (iMEGA), a trade group of industry insiders formed to combat the UIGEA, standing to sue the government for repeal of the new law. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday August 26, 2008 02:51:20 PM August 25th, 2008 - Republicans and Poker
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Poker, Online Casino, Online Gambling
Online Casino Reports - Recent political polls have shown high public interest in regulating and taxing online gambling, in order to legalize online gambling in the States. However, that pesky UIGEA bill refuses to lay down to sleep like a good child. Grassroots movements have begun in full steam with Republican voters. Their ideology is that if more people let those who represent them know this is a major issue to be contended with in the upcoming election, these representatives may just garner the votes necessary to remain or be elected into office. US-based Poker Players Alliance (PPA) are encouraging members to write posts on the Republican Party's Platform online website, letting them know that loyal Republicans are very upset with the current situation. Flooding the representatives has worked before with various political agendas and the citizen's voices are loud and clear. In 2004, the Republican Party stated unfounded results regarding the number of problem gamblers in the US and supported the rejection of online gambling. The PPA hopes that by writing in their actual beliefs and correct numbers, this type of support and thinking will be eradicated when November's elections roll around. For a political party that traditionally thinks governmental power should be limited and totes the individual's rights, what are they so dead set against online gambling?
Added to Feed: Monday August 25, 2008 06:36:30 PM August 23rd, 2008 - Finally Some Bigger Exposure for Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Online Gambling, Online Casino, News
AskMen.com - Is the sky falling on our heads? What are the real implications of The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act? The merits of the new anti-gaming legislation, its potency and ability to be enforced, and its affect on the industry are not what concern poker players. The fact of the matter is that poker players have lost tons of play from major sites like Party Poker, Paradise Poker, and InterPoker when the sites closed their virtual doors to American players. The closing of these three sites alone has displaced tens of millions of American poker players, creating confusion as to where they should reconvene their regular game. While the pros are deftly shifting their funds from the closed-for-business giants, the newbies (read: the fish) are slipping through the net; and instead of moving their account from their old room to a new US-friendly room, they fall out of the food chain completely when they decide that the whole experience is just too difficult to pursue. But this is not the greatest casualty of the new legislation. The greatest casualty will be the land-based tournaments not getting a healthy influx of new players from online qualifiers. Not least affected will be the 2007 WSOP. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday August 24, 2008 07:27:12 PM August 22nd, 2008: Casino Bodog: Business As Usual?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - Alright. We report that the person behind the Bodog empire, Calvin Ayre is quitting. Then we raise the possibility, on our Weekly Edition that this might be the end of Bodog altogether. But from reading the news across the web, including such announcements that read "Bodog Casino Rocks!" you would wonder whether we know what we are talking about. Well, talk on message boards is definitely alive, and the APCW seem to be as convinced as we are, namely that not all is kosher behind Bodog's latest moves. It will be nice if we see an official announcement from Bodog that would explain the situation, clarify the rumors and the uncertainty as they do. In the meantime, the only thing we stand behind is the question mark in the title. Is business as usual at Casino Bodog?
Added to Feed: Sunday August 24, 2008 07:23:13 PM August 21st, 2008 - Barack Obama and Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Gambling, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - In an election year, everyone watches the candidates. That's so obvious that we never think about it, but it's a basic fact that colors everything "we," the people and the candidates, do. This year, we're all living in a fishbowl. Since the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), in 2006, the online gaming community has kept a close eye on political contests. Gamers want to know who's running for the open seats, and where they stand on Internet gambling. Let's face it: there's a large bloc of potential voters out there who want this Act repealed. With this in mind, online casino and poker players have given the Presidential candidates some close scrutiny. Both have mixed records when it comes to online gaming, and neither has received a high rating from the Poker Players Alliance; McCain was given a D rating, and Obama only received a C. That C rating of Obama's seems incongruous, but is it really? While an Illinois state senator, Obama voted against several restrictions on gambling (and voted 'present' on other similar bills), but not because he was opposed to gambling; rather, he stated that he didn't like the way those particular bills were written. This, from a man who says he enjoys a good poker game. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 22, 2008 11:36:02 AM August 20th, 2008 - Court Orders Boss Media Servers Taken Offline
Category: Online Casino, Online Poker, Online Gambling, Gaming / Casinos, News
Malta Today - The First Hall Civil Court of Malta has handed down a judgment in favour of PokerTrillion.com, authorising the seizure of Boss Media Malta Limited and Boss Media AB servers, which will now have to cease commercial activity from 18 September 2008. The court’s decision in this matter is final and Boss Media will not be allowed to appeal. The ruling by Judge Gino Camilleri relates to Trillion Limited’s multi-million euro lawsuit for breach of contract against Boss Media AB and their associated companies. Back in April, PokerTrillion.com achieved a freezing order of the bank accounts of Boss Holdings and Boss Media Malta Poker at seven of the banks where they hold accounts. The freezing order was made in conjunction with a €45 million lawsuit for alleged fraudulent, and potential criminal activities of various personnel and management of Boss Media, and associated companies in Sweden and Malta. PokerTrillion.com is an online poker room which used Boss Media’s gaming solutions to offer online poker services to their customers using their own branded version of the Boss Poker product. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 22, 2008 11:32:35 AM August 15th, 2008 - Murdered Chinese Students lLinked to Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Gambling, Online Poker
Guardian.co.uk - Police investigating the brutal double murder of two Chinese students in Newcastle say the victims may have been involved in a fraudulent internet betting scheme. Chinese graduates Zhen Xing Yang and his girlfriend, Xi Zhou, both 25, were found dead with extensive head injuries in their flat in Newcastle on Saturday. It has emerged they were involved in betting fraud and the trading of forged documents, such as travelling visas and professional qualifications. Detective Superintendent Steve Wade, who is leading the inquiry, said: "A possible motive for the killing is beginning to emerge concerning the lifestyle of Xi Zhou and Zhen Xing Yang. "Community intelligence supported by the examination of computer equipment and mobile call data has shown that both of the victims have been involved in fraudulent activity which has angered and upset a number of people. We are currently investigating this as a possible motive for the killings." Officers are examining a computer and three mobile phones from the murder scene. It was revealed yesterday that Yang placed adverts on UK-based Mandarin-language websites recruiting people to watch football matches around the world. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 22, 2008 11:30:13 AM August 12th, 2008 - Online Gambling Bill Waits for Congress
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Online Casino Reports - A bill in the United States to commission a comprehensive, independent study into online gambling will not come up for discussion before next month, at the earliest, after being put on the backburner along with various other pieces of legislation. The House of Representatives apparently believes that a debate on a resolution on former deputy White House chief of staff Karl Rove should take precedent over the Internet Gambling Study Act, which seeks set up a mechanism to understand the pros and cons of regulating and possibly taxing online gambling. And what makes the Rove resolution such a pressing issue? The former White House official is alleged to have leaked the identity of retired ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV's wife, Valerie Plame, as a Central Intelligence Agency in retaliation for Wilson's op-ed in The New York Times in which he criticized the Bush administration's handling of the war in Iraq.
The Internet Gambling Study Act, sponsored by Nevada Representative Shelly Berkeley, was proposed last May and has the support of the American Gaming Association and many politicians. Alas, it will have to wait.
Added to Feed: Friday August 22, 2008 11:27:34 AM August 8th, 2008 - Three Men Plead Guilty in BOS Online Gambling Case
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Covers - Three men who helped promote the online gambling firm BetOnSports have pleaded guilty to federal charges. William Hernan Lenis, his son, Will Lenis, and nephew Manny Lenis entered the pleas Wednesday in St. Louis. Attorneys for the Miami men said they were minor players caught up in a high-profile investigation. The U.S. attorney's office in St. Louis in 2006 accused BetOnSports, its executives and others of illegally accepting bets online. Later that year, the government settled civil charges against BetOnSports and permanently barred the company from accepting any bets from U.S. gamblers. The company itself pleaded guilty last year. The case has been watched closely by the multibillion-dollar online gambling industry. Officials with the U.S. attorney's office in St. Louis declined to comment on Wednesday's pleas, citing pending cases against BetOnSports founder Stephen Kaplan and former chief executive David Carruthers. Lenis, 55, pleaded guilty to interstate transportation of gambling paraphernalia. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 08, 2008 02:20:08 AM August 7th, 2008 - Lawmakers Urge U.S. to Stop Action vs EU Gambling Firms
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Reuters - Two U.S. lawmakers have urged the U.S. Justice Department to suspend its investigation of European Internet gambling companies for possible criminal violations that occurred before Congress passed a law in 2006 to crack down on online gambling. Rep. Robert Wexler, a Florida Democrat, and Rep. Steve Cohen, a Tennessee Democrat, warned U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey in separate letters the issue could lead to a potentially damaging trade spat between the United States and the European Union at the World Trade Organization. "In all likelihood, this issue will escalate and I understand could result in WTO action focused specifically on how the U.S. government enforces its laws. I cannot see how that can be in the interests of this country," Wexler said in a letter to Mukasey on Wednesday. European Internet gambling companies lost billions of euros in market value after Congress moved to shut down the U.S. market by making it illegal for banks and credit card companies to make payments to online gambling sites. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 08, 2008 02:17:21 AM August 5th, 2008 - US Bill to Clarify Online Gambling Laws
Category: Online Casino, Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - A United States Congressman has introduced a bill designed to clarify the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which effectively banned Internet gambling by outlawing the transfer of funds from a financial institution to Internet gambling sites. Bill HR 6663, introduced by Republican Congressman Pete Sessions (Texas) specifically defines illegal online gambling as only gambling involving sports betting. It also grants amnesty to companies who willingly left the US market, and might even allow their re-entry into the US market. According to the bill, "No provision of this Act, or any amendment made by this Act, shall be construed as clarifying or implying that Internet bets or wagers, other than sports bets or wagers, which were accepted subsequent to October 13, 2006, are in violation of Federal law."Sessions said he singled out sports betting because it is already outlawed in 49 of the 50 states (with the exception of Nevada), that it provides potential for corruption of sporting events, and the fact that all federal prosecutions involving illegal gambling thus far have involved sports betting. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday August 08, 2008 02:14:42 AM August 4th, 2008 - 888 First Half Operating Profit Up 38%
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Globes Online - Online gaming company 888 Holding plc (LSE:888) published its financial report for the second quarter and first half of 2008 today. Since these are interim results the company did not include its net profit, but the figures nevertheless provide a snapshot of the current state of the company's business. 888 posted operating revenue of $69 million for the quarter, up 5% on the preceding quarter and 36% on the corresponding quarter in 2007. Net gaming revenue totaled $67 million, 4% more than in the preceding quarter, and 33% more than the $50 million in the corresponding quarter last year. Operating profit for the first half of 2008 rose 38% to $135 million from $98 million in the first half of 2007, and net gaming revenue rose 35% to $132 million from $97 million in the same period in 2007. 888 said it was pleased with the results for the second quarter and that it had made a good start to the third quarter. During the first 22 days of July, average daily net gaming revenue was approximately 2% higher than in the second quarter, driven mainly by emerging offerings as well as higher poker net gaming revenue. 888's net gaming revenue from poker for the quarter was unchanged at $20 million compared with the corresponding quarter, but totaled $42 million for the first half of the year, 2% more than the $41 million in the first half of 2007.
Added to Feed: Friday August 08, 2008 02:13:08 AM July 30th, 2008 - Experts: Internet addiction growing
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
UPI / Moldova.org - The author of a book on Internet addiction says that 5 to 10 percent of the U.S. population is hooked with larger percentages in other countries addicted. Kimberly Young, clinical director of the Center for Internet Addiction Recovery, told Medill News Service that many addicts are hooked on one particular aspect of the Internet. The major ones include online gambling and gaming, sex sites, compulsive surfers and even addiction to eBay. Coleen Moore of the Illinois Center for Addiction Recovery said that she has seen young adults who spend 14 to 18 hours a day at their computers. At that point, the Internet is keeping them from work, family life and friendships outside the virtual world. Young compared the Internet to alcohol. Many people can use it and then turn to something else but some lose control. She said that treatment is in its early stages, depending on therapy. Young is the author of "Caught in the Net," a book on Internet addiction. She said that in some countries like Taiwan and China as many as 30 percent of computer users may be hooked.
Added to Feed: Wednesday July 30, 2008 07:22:33 PM July 29th, 2008 - PayPal Sharing Customer Information With US Government?
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Online Casino
Gambling 911 - Lots of people use PayPal but the online payment solution seems to care little about customer privacy. The US government has demanded these records in reference to offshore transfers, and PayPal will be fully cooperating. The Government is looking to crack down on those US citizens using offshore "tax havens". During a 16 month period at the beginning of the decade, PayPal was all the rage for the online gambling industry. It was already an established and known payment processor that made betting with offshore sports books and online casinos especially simple. Records dating back to that time will also be submitted to the IRS for review. Gambling911.com at the time had long warned its readers to stay clear of PayPal due to years of complaints related to the company. The news comes as prosecutors asked a Miami federal judge to require Swiss bank UBS AG to turn over information on its U.S. customers who may have used secret accounts to evade taxes. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday July 29, 2008 04:37:55 PM July 27th, 2008 - Online Gambling Industry Should be Celebrating COPA Finding
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Gambling 911 - Joe Brennan, Jr. - Founder of iMEGA.org - a trade organization dedicated to the right of privacy and freedoms over the Internet believes one of the best things that could have happened to online gambling in recent years is a 3rd Circuit court decision to strike down as unconstitutional a 1998 law intended to protect children from sexual material and other objectionable content on the Internet. "Again, the 3rd Circuit has shown why it may be the most important Court in the country when considering Internet rights and "digital civil liberties," Brennan, Jr. espoused. While the protection of children over the Internet is a concern of both the sex purveyor and online gambling industries, COPA was found to be too broad in its scope. In its ruling Tuesday, the federal appeals court concluded that the Child Online Protection Act also violates the First Amendment because filtering technologies and other parental control tools offer a less restrictive way to protect children from inappropriate content online. The court also ruled that the law is unconstitutionally overly broad and vague. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday July 29, 2008 04:35:27 PM July 24th, 2008 - Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet for Cereus?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Poker, Online Gambling
PR WEB - Today, the management of both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet announced the upcoming launch of CEREUS: a new poker platform that will integrate the customers and features from both poker rooms, instantly making CEREUS the third largest online poker network. CEREUS is the result of more than 12 months innovation and development. Absolute Poker and UltimateBet will join the network and retain their unique assets to continue as individual brands, but they will now share more players, more action, more tournaments, incredible new features and massive promotions. Paul Leggett, Chief Operations Officer of both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet, said: "I am so excited to announce the launch of our new poker network CEREUS. This is a huge landmark for our company and online poker. I'm confident that Absolute Poker and UltimateBet customers will be thrilled by the new platform and we look forward to welcoming many new players from around the world. "CEREUS not only delivers the best online poker experience; it enables our company to improve our operations and deliver significantly better value and service to our customers. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday July 29, 2008 04:33:12 PM July 17th, 2008 - 888.com Unethical Practices
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Casino On Net, Online Poker
APCW / Affiliate Guard Dog - The APCW has learned that partner site Affiliate Gueard Dog tracked an unannounced change of affiliate terms and conditions at 888.com, also know as Casino-On-Net, and the owvers of Pacific Poker. The terms and condition change affects all properties. 888.com has decided to reduce all affiliate earnings to 10% should a webmaster produce traffic that does no result in a conversion each and every month. This flies in the face of logic, as webmasters are to send traffic and programs are to convert the traffic. It also flies in the face of lifetime revenue agreements set in place when webmasters signed up at 888.com, and goes against the very principles of affiliate marketing. This policy punishes webmasters by stealing profits owed to them under the previous revenue share agreement should 888 fail to do their job and convert the players. 888 has had ample opportunity and warning to address this issue and they have refused to comment.
Added to Feed: Thursday July 17, 2008 03:26:02 PM July 16th, 2008 - McDermott Tries New Approach to Legal Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
PRNewswire-USNewswire - Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) introduced legislation yesterday that directs a potential $40 billion over the next 10 years to be spent on job training for those in the declining sectors of the economy and educational assistance for foster care youth. The legislation, Investing in our Human Resources Act of 2008 (H.R. 6501), would be funded through new revenue generated by regulated Internet gambling activities. We have an ideal opportunity to invest billions of dollars in American workers and our struggling economy without increasing the federal deficit, said Rep. McDermott in speaking about the Investing in our Human Resources Act (IHRA). IHRA would utilize a funding stream that would become available should Congress decide to legalize and regulate Internet gambling, which would protect consumers and collect tax revenue that is currently offshore. A provision in the legislation also encourages responsible Internet gambling behavior and an awareness of unsafe practices, something which has been praised by problem gambling advocates. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 17, 2008 03:18:03 PM July 15th, 2008 - Canadian Professor Urges Regulate Online Gambling Study
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Online Casino
Reuters - Canada and the United States should legalize and regulate online gambling to contain its potentially harmful effects because players tend to bet more frequently and aggressively than they do in casinos, a study released on Tuesday says. The study -- conducted jointly by academics of the University of Western Ontario in Canada and the University of Nevada at Las Vegas -- found that online gambling is readily accessible via the Internet even though it is outlawed or in a "legal grey area" in United States and Canada. Online gambling is big business, the study said, estimating worldwide spending at more than C$10 billion ($10 billion) a year. Betting online is a problem, the study says, because it has the potential to be more addictive than casino gambling. Online gamblers can hide their activity more easily than casino gamblers, and betting can quickly become a routine part of their daily lives. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 17, 2008 03:15:46 PM July 12th, 2008 - Legal Online Poker in California?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
Poker Pages - The California Gambling Control / Intrastate Online Poker Legalization Act (authored by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys) was approved by the Senate Governmental Organization Committee on Tuesday June 24 on a 6-1 vote, with amendments to move forward on drafting regulations and generating projections for potential revenue. The Attorney General's Bureau of Gambling Control, the state Gaming Control Commission and the Legislative Counsel will now recommend a structure for the system, analyze potential revenue and draft regulations to be included in the bill's language as it moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee in August, its final stop before a Senate floor. Poker Voters of America President Jim Tabilio said his organization, which serves as the bill's citizen sponsor, is extremely pleased with Tuesday's favorable Committee vote. "It's a good sign that the legislators are taking this issue seriously, understand the importance of the bill and are asking the right questions," said Tabilio. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 17, 2008 03:10:43 PM July 10th, 2008 - Fortune Affiliates Announces Christmas in July
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
PR Newswire - Christmas is coming early - and Fortune Affiliates has gifts for everyone. Affiliates can take part in Fortune Affiliates' hot new Christmas in July competition and win Amazon.com Gift Cards ranging from $20 to $10,000. Winning is oh-so-easy. All affiliates have to do is bring in New Active Casino Players between July 1 to August 31, 2008. The more players they bag, the higher the value of the Gift Card will be. To help with recruitment, Fortune Affiliates' marketing department has designed an irresistible Vault of Mystery player acquisition promotion, which will be running on Vegas Palms Online Casino during the month of July. Vault of Mystery Promotion banners will be available in the Media Management system of the Fortune Affiliates website soon. Here's how it works: All new players will be given the chance to pick one of three boxes in order to receive a generous No Deposit Mystery Bonus. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 10, 2008 01:12:35 AM July 9th, 2008 - Barack Obama Solicits Under Age Gambling?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Gambling, Online Poker
Star Tribune - The fundraiser on Barack Obama's national website might be considered a raffle in Minnesota. Not so, his campaign says. The head of the Minnesota Gambling Control Board said that a solicitation for funds on the national website of the Barack Obama presidential campaign may constitute a raffle, which is a violation of Minnesota gambling laws. Tom Barrett, executive director of the board, said he will ask the state Department of Public Safety to look into the matter. The Obama campaign said Monday night that the solicitation does not constitute a raffle. "We are not conducting a raffle of any kind," said Nick Kimball, a spokesman for the Obama campaign in Minnesota. The Obama website, which is soliciting funds of up to $2,300, says anyone who makes a contribution to the Obama campaign of $5 or more between now and July 31 "could be one of 10 supporters chosen to meet Barack backstage" in Denver. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 10, 2008 01:09:06 AM July 8th, 2008 - NC House Wants Contest Under Video Poker Ban
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
WAVY.com - A new online sweepstakes that law enforcement argues resembles video poker may soon be on its way out of North Carolina. The House tentatively agreed Tuesday to make illegal a new game showing up in convenience stores and truck stops. A complete ban on video poker took effect in July 2007. Democratic Rep. Ray Rapp of Madison County said the bill would eliminate a loophole in that law involving the prize contest. A customer buys a phone card and then can play a game on a computer terminal similar to video poker to reveal the prize. But the player can roll over winnings and keep playing or spend more money on phone cards. The bill passed by a vote of 116-1. A final House vote could come Wednesday.
Added to Feed: Thursday July 10, 2008 01:05:04 AM July 4th, 2008 - Warren Cloud Dead at 34
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Dispatch Online : Online casino pioneer Warren Cloud has died on his boat in the Mediterranean. Gambling South Africa reports that the South African multi-millionaire, 34, had a heart attack while sailing near the party island Ibiza, off Spain, at the weekend. Also known by online aliases “Oliver Curran” and “Don Fortune”, Cloud made millions after starting his online casino career in Johannesburg about a decade ago with a gambling site powered by Korean software. After Cloud’s first bet on online gambling went bust, he moved from Johannesburg to Australia, then to London and finally set up shop in Costa Rica. He made his millions there through the launch of online casinos such as High Rollers Lounge, Vegas Riches and Royal Circus Casino. At one stage, Cloud’s fortune reportedly amounted to R 2.4billion and he attempted to list his companies on the London Stock Exchange. The reclusive Cloud was rumoured to have retired in recent years. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday July 10, 2008 01:01:41 AM July 1st, 2008 - France to Assume European Union Presidency
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Epoch Times - France is to assume presidency of the European Union starting Tuesday bringing along what analysts have described as packed full of diplomacy. Just fresh from his victory over rival Ségolène Royal last year, France's President Nicholas Sarkozy already has ambitious plans for the EU during his six months tenure as president of the 27-nation union which includes immigration reform and his project the Mediterranean Union, a pet project under France which plans to bring together countries in the surrounding area into a EU framed network. According to Eric Chevallier, special adviser to the French foreign minister, Sarkozy and the French presidency's top priority is to "explain more what Europe brings to the citizens of Europe" and also transform France's turn as head of the EU into a model of efficiency. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 30, 2008 11:45:02 PM June 30th, 2008 - UK's Biggest Casino Operator Launches Its First Online Brand
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Leeds, UK - CircusCasino.com, which will be operated by Genting Stanley Alderney Limited, is a logical and important strategic step for Genting International in extending its product range for its UK customer base. The Genting International group's operations in the UK includes 44 clubs, such as the prestigious Crockfords club in Mayfair as well as the national Circus, Maxims and Mint brands. Justin Tan, Managing Director, Genting International, said: "Being the UK's biggest land-based casino operator, it is important for us to meet all the needs of our customers, including the growing demand to be able to play online from the comfort of their homes. It is a significant opportunity for us to leverage the heritage, expertise and reputation of our Group brands." (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 30, 2008 11:41:19 PM June 29th, 2008 - Man Who Robbed Bank to Pay Online Gambling Debt Released
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Associated Press - A former Lehigh University class president was released from prison after serving nearly two years for robbing a bank to pay back his online poker debts.
Greg Hogan Jr., 22, the son of an Ohio preacher and former president of Lehigh University's class of 2008, left state prison on June 16 after serving 22 months for the August 2005 robbery of a Wachovia bank in Allentown. After handing the teller a note demanding money and saying he had a gun, Hogan got away with about $2,800 and then drove off with his unsuspecting fraternity brothers. He was arrested a few hours later at orchestra practice. ``When we sent him off to college, we envisioned coming back to Pennsylvania to listen to him make the president's address,'' said his father, the Rev. Gregory Hogan Sr., pastor of First Baptist Church of Barberton in Barberton, Ohio. ``Instead, we're here to pick him up from prison.'' (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 30, 2008 11:38:18 PM June 28th, 2008 - Online Gambling Figures Flying in Norway
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Online Casino Reports - The Norwegian online gambling industry has grown by a substantial 6.1% in the last year, according to figures released this week by the Norwegian Gambling Commission. An estimated 244,000 Norwegians gambled online in the last year, spending a total of Euro 961 million. The state lottery was the most popular choice with 48% of gamers choosing this online option. This was followed by online poker sites coming in at 28% and online sports betting at 27%. 82.9 % of online gambling revenue was directed at foreign providers, with Norwegian operators: Norsk Rikstoto and Norsk Tipping receiving a further $258 million. Research conducted amongst 10,000 Norwegians between the ages of 16-74 revealed that 12% of adult men had gambled online during 2007, as compared with only 2% of adult women. 9% of adult gamblers chose to do so via mobile phones. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 30, 2008 11:35:28 PM June 27th, 2008 - Bachus Offers Misinformation on Internet Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
PRNewswire-USNewswire - The American Banker published an editorial yesterday, Viewpoint: Blocking Web Gambling Rules Would Be Mistake, by Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) that uses incorrect information to argue for the continued prohibition of Internet gambling. Rep. Bachus opinion piece comes as the House Committee on Financial Services is scheduled to vote today on a bill, the Payments System Protection Act (H.R. 5767), that would prohibit the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System from proposing, prescribing or implementing any regulations related to the current ban on Internet gambling, as required by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). It is unfortunate that Rep. Bachus is using scare tactics to argue for the continued prohibition of Internet gambling, said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesman for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday June 28, 2008 01:11:46 AM June 25th, 2008 - Lawmakers Disagree Over Defining "Online Gambling"
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Associated Press - Lawmakers failed Wednesday to agree on setting a clear definition of illegal Internet gambling to go along with a ban on online betting passed in 2006. The Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department have been unable to finalize rules to implement the ban because Congress didn't clearly define online gambling when it passed legislation less than two years ago. The House Financial Services Committee voted Wednesday on legislation to require federal regulators to write a uniform definition of which types of gambling should and should not be allowed on the Internet, followed by new rules implementing the ban. The tie vote, 32-32, meant the legislation failed under committee rules. Senate Republicans, pushed by then-Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, had attached the online gambling ban to an unrelated port security bill in a rush of year-end legislation in 2006. (more)
Added to Feed: Wednesday June 25, 2008 05:31:03 PM June 23rd, 2008 - House Panel To Consider Bill Halting Online Gambling Ban
Category: News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Dow Jones - The House Financial Services Committee Tuesday will hold a markup of legislation aimed at halting regulations which prevent banks from accepting payments from Internet gambling companies. The move comes as part of two-part strategy by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Ma., chairman of the panel, to regulate rather than ban outright internet-based gambling. He is trying to put a hold on a 2006 law that instructs the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve to draft regulations preventing financial institutions from processing payments from online gambling sites. The measure has been opposed by the gambling industry, which argues there is no reason for the federal government to ban outright online gambling. It has also been opposed by banks and credit unions, as well as their regulators -- the Treasury and Federal Reserve -- which say the current law is too vague. "We want to make sure the regulations are not overly burdensome and are workable," said Floyd Stoner, chief lobbyist at the American Bankers Association. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 23, 2008 05:40:51 PM June 21st, 2008 - EU Raise Stakes in Gambling Feud with US
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Financial Times - A transatlantic feud over online gambling is set to intensify after the US brushed off claims from the European Union that it was discriminating against its companies. The European Commission is taking up complaints from online gambling operators that US gambling laws are being targeted at European companies to protect certain US operators, such as the websites run by the US horse-betting industry. But in a letter responding to formal Commission questions, Susan Schwab, the US trade representative, said there was “no basis for any allegation of ‘discriminatory enforcement’ of US gambling laws”.
The dispute is likely to escalate next month when Peter Mandelson, EU trade commissioner, sends a delegation to Washington to press its case with US lawmakers and hold a press conference. The focus of the dispute is legislation passed two years ago, which strengthened anti-gambling laws banning telephone betting, making it a federal crime to receive money for “unlawful internet gambling”. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday June 21, 2008 05:55:19 PM June 20th, 2008 - House Committee to Vote on Suspending Internet Gambling Ban
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
PRNewswire-USNewswire - On June 24, 2008, the House Committee on Financial Services will mark up legislation, H.R. 5767, that would prohibit the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System from proposing, prescribing or implementing any regulations related to the current ban on Internet gambling, as required by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). Congress has studied this issue and heard from the financial services community and federal regulators that the current ban on Internet gambling is burdensome and doomed to fail. Now it is time for Congress to change course and find a way to protect the millions of Americans that are continuing to gamble online, said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. H.R. 5767 was introduced by Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas) on April 11, 2008. The introduction followed a hearing entitled, Proposed UIGEA Regulations: Burden without Benefit? (more)
Added to Feed: Friday June 20, 2008 08:20:41 PM June 19th, 2008 - Spain to License Online Gaming by 2009
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
eGaming Review - Spain is on course to have a system in place for regulating online betting and gaming by the spring of 2009, according to legal observers. Discussion of the various conditions the eventual regulation would need to fulfil dominated the agenda at the most recent quarterly meeting between federal and regional betting and gaming authorities in Barcelona on Tuesday. Senior representatives from the LAE (the National Gaming Commission), the Spanish tax authorities, the Home Affairs Ministry, the Ministry of Industry and the gaming offices of each of Spain’s 17 regions were in attendance. (more)
Added to Feed: Thursday June 19, 2008 03:44:38 PM June 18th, 2008 - Las Vegas Says: Local Gambling Down, Online Gambling Up
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
NBC News 3 Las Vegas - There is one place that is flourishing in spite of the poor economy: gambling in cyberspace. Online gambling has seen a sharp increase in profits recently. This could be one reason why local casinos are reporting a dip in gaming revenues this year, experiencing a drop of four percent. If you know of any local casino workers or gamblers who have witnessed the change, please contact NBC News 3 Las Vegas.
Added to Feed: Wednesday June 18, 2008 09:27:02 PM June 17th, 2008 - Internet Gambling Ban Threatens Horse Racing Industry
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Cincinnati Enquirer - When the federal Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act passed in 2006, the horse racing industry was protected with an exemption. However, it is now clear that this exemption will fail to protect the industry from the harmful effects of the act. The act requires blocking of "unlawful" Internet gambling by financial institutions. However, neither the act nor its regulations (as currently drafted) define unlawful Internet gambling. As a result, banks and credit card companies have been deputized to not only enforce this deeply flawed law, but also to define its scope. Unfortunately, the law penalizes banks severely if they err on the side of processing transactions later determined to be unlawful, while permitting them to block perfectly legal transactions. As a result, banks can be expected to err strongly on the side of caution. Many banks and credit card companies will simply block all online gaming transactions to ensure compliance with the 2006 act. And the horse racing exemption requires that financial transactions fully comply with every detail of the Interstate Horse Racing Act to be exempt - a determination financial institutions are probably neither equipped nor inclined to make. And, the biggest concern for blocking of these transactions is the Justice Department's position that all interstate horse race wagering violates the Wire Act. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday June 17, 2008 06:41:02 PM June 17th, 2008 - Antigua, US Set Friday Deadline to Resolve UIGEA Dispute
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
The Associated Press - Washington and this tiny Caribbean nation have set a new deadline of Friday to resolve their dispute over Internet gambling, according to the islands' top finance official. Antigua accuses the U.S. of crippling its gambling industry by banning Americans from placing online bets with gambling operators, including those based in the twin-island country of just 70,000 inhabitants. On June 6, a World Trade Organization deadline passed without resolution. The WTO last year backed Antigua's request to target U.S. services, copyrights and trademarks in retaliation for a U.S. online betting ban --but ruled it could impose only $21 million in annual trade sanctions. On Monday, Finance Minister Errol Cort said sit-downs with U.S. trade representatives could achieve resolution over the gambling discord by a new settlement deadline of Friday. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday June 17, 2008 06:37:40 PM June 16th, 2008 - UIGEA Failing Miserably
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Online Casino Reports - A panel of gaming industry experts encouraged lawmakers from the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States on Saturday to move towards state-regulated online gambling. The experts substantiated their claims by pointing out the shortfalls of the 2006 UIGEA. According to the act, banks are responsible for screening any dubious transactions, though Wells Fargo alone handles millions of transactions on a daily basis. Senior company counsel for Wells Fargo Teruo Kitada said, "Perhaps the idea behind the act is commendable, but the challenge is the implementation." Consultant Frank Catania says federal law is ill equipped to regulate online gaming, suggesting instead that states do the regulating. He called the act "bad public policy" that is "impossible to enforce." While the California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion argues that Internet gambling is a recipe for making every home with a computer a potential gaming facility, Catania and other experts argue that it should be regulated just as traditional casinos or other gaming venues are. "We're talking basic consumer protection," Catania said. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday June 16, 2008 02:59:45 PM June 15th - Ultimate Bet's Ultimate Poker Fraud Defense
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos
Online Casino Reports - That online poker sites would be vulnerable to cheating is a concern that millions of players share. That this particular online poker site has known about the suspect cheating and took steps to thwart an investigation is outrageous. Concerns of suspicious activity at Ultimate Bet online poker have been posted on the High Stakes No Limit forum months ago. Ultimate Bet and its regulatory body Kahnawake Gaming Commission were in fact informed of the allegations, but did not work to solve them. Although millions of dollars had been obtained under suspicious circumstances, perhaps even with aid of someone on the inside, Ultimate Bet made its first public statement regarding the suspicions on 6 March, 2008. The story was floating, close to Ultimate Bet's ears no doubt, for three months prior to that date. Only then did they acknowledge the activity in NioNio's account was "abnormal," merely addressing the issue, not admitting any wrongdoing or negligence. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday June 15, 2008 01:44:12 AM June 15th - Study: 15% of Online Casino Owners Have Criminal Records
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos
PR Web - According to a new study financed by http://www.BestOCG.com 15% of online casino owners have a criminal record. It seems as thought the bad propaganda is only getting worse for this industry. In an industry plagued by bad propaganda and a less then clean track record, this news comes as yet another hard blow. In any regulated environment, a clean track record is necessary for anyone thinking of starting a new company. Unfortunately, normal practices and standards seem to be the exception and not the rule in the online gambling industry. This is according to a new study financed by http://www.BestOCG.com and carried out by Professor Juan Manuel, expert in business development from the "Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales" of the Universidad del Itsmo in Guatemala. After an extensive research of industry owner backgrounds, Professor Juan Manuel found that 15% of online casino owners had a criminal record. The conclusion came from a random sample of 119 online casino owners.
Added to Feed: Sunday June 15, 2008 01:41:39 AM June 14th, 2008 - French Floodgates Open to Online Gambling
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos
Online Casino Reports - The French government plans to open up the online gambling market following pressure from the EU to legalize and regulate the industry. Online gambling is currently outlawed in France, with the exception of the state-run monopolies: Parimutuel Urbain (PMU) for horse racing and Francaise Des Jeux for lotteries. Despite agreeing to legalize online gambling in France, the government is keen to preserve its revenues from the industry, estimated at $8.27 billion. The decision to legislate has been made in order to avert court action by the EU. The European bloc has been pressurizing France to end its state monopoly of online gambling sites which contravenes European law. In contrast to previous comments on the prospect of legalization French Budget Minister, Eric Woerth, has recently stated that the government had no choice but to back down. A law will be presented after the summer break, an online gambling authority established and approvals of gambling operators expected to commence in late 2009. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday June 15, 2008 01:39:22 AM June 12th, 2008 - Germany Online Gambling Community Swells
Category: Online Poker, Online Gambling, Online Casino, News, Gaming / Casinos
Online Casino Reports - Eins, zwei drei... Count to 2.2 million and you have the number of Germans who play and gamble online on a regular basis. The German Forsa research group's study found that the number of Germans who gamble regularly online is beyond anyone's expectations. The options they are presented are many and varied. Lotto draws 700,000 Germans to the Internet; online poker is a pastime hobby for 430,000 others; the Bundesliga football matches draw sports bets from half a million Germans. As for the volume in Euros, the betting market crosses the 2 billion Euro mark, at 2.2 billion Euros annually bet and wagered online. The survey, titled "The German Betting Market in Transition: Enormous Growth or Return to the Old Model?" predicts this sum to more than double and reach 5 billion Euros by the year 2010. Forsa makes no prediction as to the number of gamblers taking part in the gambling activities. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday June 15, 2008 01:33:41 AM June 8th, 2008 - Citadel Pays Off US Government
Category: Online Poker, Online Casino, Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos
Online Casino Reports - The US government continues its persecution of online casino and Internet gambling businesses. This time it is Citadel, Canada-based payment method, which will pay a fine and avoid further presecution. ESI Entertainment Systems collected over $2 billion in the five years that it served American gamblers, between 2002 and early 2007. Through its Citadel subsidiary, its payment method supported online casino sites based outside the US. Citadel accounted for about 80% of ESI's business, and online gambling related payments were the majority of the web-generated income. In an announcement made this week, the US Attorney's office in Manhattan said ESI will pay $9.1 million. If it avoids wrongdoing in the next 18 months, it will officially avoid being prosecuted on a conspiracy charge. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday June 15, 2008 01:30:53 AM June 4th, 2008 - Sportingbet Employees Detained in Turkey
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Associated Press - Online gaming company Sportingbet PLC said Wednesday it still has very little information on two employees detained in Turkey, where the company has reduced operations in recent months and the legal status of internet gambling is hazy. The comments came as Sportingbet unveiled third quarter profits that were better than the company predicted. Sportingbet confirmed that two London-based staff of Turkish nationality remain in custody after being detained last month when visiting Turkey on vacation. The pair are among a number of people affiliated with Sportingbet's Turkish online gaming Web site Superbahis who were taken into custody. The company said it has received no further information from Turkish authorities on what the two might be charged with. Chief Executive Andrew McIver said that lawyers had been appointed to the case, but the structure of the Turkish legal system meant they are likely to remain unaware of the formal charges until the case goes to court.
Added to Feed: Wednesday June 04, 2008 09:40:39 PM June 3rd, 2008 - Poker Pros Seek Full House
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Casino, Online Gambling, Online Poker
Politico - Sen. Ted Stevens plays in his native Alaska’s fishing camps. Rep. Charlie Rangel deals with his buddies from the block back in New York. Rep. Joe Barton heads north from Dallas on I-35 to Oklahoma’s Indian reservations. Rep. Duncan Hunter runs nickel/dime/quarter games on Capitol Hill. And long before he launched his bid for the White House, then-Illinois state Sen. Barack Obama dealt in lawmakers and lobbyists during the long legislative sessions in Springfield. Be it Texas Hold ’Em, Razz, Omaha or one of poker’s many other variations, more than a few members of Congress are players. Some other rounders are Democratic Reps. Linda T. Sanchez of California, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Ed Perlmutter of Colorado and Republican Sens. John Ensign of Nevada and John Sununu of New Hampshire. But even a built-in constituency of card sharks and guppies doesn’t make supporters of online poker a good bet on Capitol Hill. The Poker Players Alliance has been working for a couple of years to convince Congress to reverse the ban on Internet gambling... (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday June 03, 2008 09:49:02 PM June 2nd, 2008 - Supreme Court Refuses to Consider Fantasy Case
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
USA Today - The Supreme Court on Monday let a fantasy sports league operator continue using baseball statistics and players' names without paying licensing fees, in a closely watched case at the heart of the $1.5 billion fantasy sports industry. With no comment or recorded vote, the justices refused to intervene in a dispute between a St. Louis company and Major League Baseball. The court's action leaves intact a 2007 U.S. appeals court decision that said the First Amendment supersedes state "rights of publicity" law that normally lets sports figures and celebrities control how their names and identities are used. New York-based attorney Glenn Colton, who filed briefs on behalf of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association at the lower court level, hailed the result as a "victory for First Amendment freedoms, fantasy sports businesses and the millions of fantasy sports players nationwide." Because the justices did not take up the merits of the case, their action sets no national precedent. Yet it could lead more fantasy league operators to forgo licensing deals. Fantasy players, Colton said, should benefit by the increased competition from a greater number of providers and games.
Added to Feed: Monday June 02, 2008 10:08:48 PM June 1st, 2008 - PartyGaming Shares Rise on Talk of U.S. Settlement
Category: News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Reuters - Shares in online poker and betting firm PartyGaming were up over 10 percent on Friday on talk it has reached a settlement with U.S. authorities over its previous U.S.-facing activities, traders said. An agreement would eliminate the possibility of U.S. authorities taking retrospective action against the company in relation to its activities in the United States prior to legislation being passed in October 2006 which effectively outlawed the industry. "I'm led to believe that they may have come to an agreement in the U.S. It means they would have no more outstanding issues with the authorities which would put them in the position where they could be bid for," said one London trader. PartyGaming declined to comment on the speculation. At 12:10 p.m., shares in the company were 10.6 percent higher at 288.75 pence. 888 , which has held similar discussion with U.S. authorities, was 3.4 percent higher at 147.25 pence.
Added to Feed: Sunday June 01, 2008 08:22:30 PM May 30th, 2008 - EU Begins Formal Probe of US Online Gambling Ban
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
The Register - The European Commission is launching a formal investigation into the US ban on online gambling. The Commission has sent a list of questions to US officials aimed at finding out if the US policy is discriminatory against European firms or not, according to Inside Trade. The US banned online gambling in 2006 using legislation which was tacked onto the Safe Port Act which provided funding to make ports safe from terrorists. Several firms saw their share prices collapse as a result. But worse was to come. Neteller, the payments processing company, saw its users' accounts frozen and its shares suspended when two executives were arrested. Sportingbet also had executives arrested while they were passing through US airports. The Caribbean island of Antigua won a WTO ruling that US rules were discriminatory. Antigua was awarded $21m in December. In December last year the US agreed to pay the EU, along with Canada and Japan, compensation rather than allow foreign firms access to the juicy US market. Some kinds of gambling, like state lotteries and horse racing, are allowed in the US. (more)
Added to Feed: Sunday June 01, 2008 08:20:44 PM May 28th, 2008 - Free "online gambling" putting teens at risk?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Statesman Journal - Sex. Drugs. Alcohol. They're all topics that parents, teachers and community leaders tend to talk to children about in hopes of preventing risky behavior. But there is another issue officials think should be discussed: online gambling. Gambling for free on the Internet has become the most popular gambling activity among youths in Oregon, according to a new survey. That concerns officials who say it introduces teenagers to gambling and grooms them for other forms in which money is waged. "You're learning that gambling is fun, it's stimulating, and it's risk-free," said Wendy Hausotter, problem gambling prevention coordinator with Oregon Department of Human Services. "That's not true at all." There's an estimated 1,700 gambling sites on the Internet that offer everything from casino-type gambling to poker to bingo. Many offer the option of gambling for free or for money. The survey, commissioned by DHS last year, found that 33 percent of youths ages 12 to 17 — an estimated 94,659 teens — gamble online for free. (more)
Added to Feed: Wednesday May 28, 2008 12:34:20 PM May 27th, 2008 - Sweden Loses Grip on State-Run Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - The Swedish government is considering selling off parts of its online gambling provider, Svenska Spel, in response to mounting pressure to comply with EU regulations. Finance Minister, Andres Borg, is reported to have proposed the privatization of less addictive forms of gambling. The details of this proposal have not yet been defined although it is likely that lottery games, sports betting and perhaps even poker may fall under the ‘low risk' category. This move would appear to be a strategy of escaping legal action from the EU. The Ministry of Finance has already been warned that Sweden is close to being called to appear before the European Court of Justice. The latest EU gaming inquiry is due to present its findings in mid-December. As reported by Online Casino Reports, the state monopoly is presented as an attempt to maintain responsible gambling standards in Sweden. The EU, however, is challenging this assertion on free-trade grounds. (more)
Added to Feed: Wednesday May 28, 2008 12:31:07 PM May 27th, 2008 - Gambling Group Unhappy with Online Lotto
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
Yahoo - The Lotteries Commission may have hit the jackpot yesterday after around 2000 customers registered to play a new online version of Lotto, but a problem gambling group says the move is a mistake.Lotteries Commission spokeswoman Karen Jones said she was "delighted" with the initial response to website MyLotto. "We've had lots of customers ringing us up and saying it's about time." Ms Jones said the commission expected "moderate" sales in the first year of operation. "Based on overseas experience we've forecast up to 1 percent of sales in the first year -- so that's about $7 million," she said. We expect it to appeal to the kind of person for whom it gets to six o'clock on a Saturday night and they think -- 'Oh, there's a big Powerball jackpot and I forgot to get my ticket' -- this way they can jump on the internet and get it without having to go out again." (More)
Added to Feed: Tuesday May 27, 2008 11:23:32 AM May 23rd, 2008 - Online Poker More Popular Than Ever With Younger Europeans
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Online Casino
PR Web - Everest Poker (www.everestpoker.net), together with marketing survey firm JupiterResearch, have discovered that for younger players, poker is more popular than ever before. The results were especially true for Germany, Sweden, Poland and Hungary, which all saw the ranks of younger online poker players increase substantially over the past year. For a second consecutive year, Everest and JupiterResearch collaborated on a survey that identifies the demographic and behavioural characteristics of poker players. This year, 10 new markets were added to the survey, which now covers Europe and Asia for a total of 16 countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland). Nearly 3,000 poker players in these 16 countries completed the survey online. Younger online poker players increase in number across Europe since February 2007 -- One of the most notable changes in this year's survey was a shift of the age demographic of European online poker players, with the biggest growth seen in the 18-24 yrs category. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday May 27, 2008 11:18:45 AM May 21st, 2008 - NBA Star Rip Hamilton: Online Poker Pro?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
NBC Sports - Over the past six seasons, Rip Hamilton has started all 110 playoff games that Detroit’s appeared in, and last week became the all-time leading scorer in Pistons playoff history, passing Isiah Thomas with 2,282 points. Originally drafted by the Wizards and now in his ninth NBA season, the 6-foot-7, 193-pound former UConn star also has started every regular-season game (463 of ‘em) he’s played in Detroit. Next up for the masked one: Boston. Question: If you weren’t playing basketball, what would you be doing instead? Answer: I’d probably be a professional poker player. I watch it all the time on ESPN, I go on the Internet and play, and I play at home with my friends all the time. I play Texas hold ‘em. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 23, 2008 02:26:36 AM May 20th, 2008 - South Africa Regulates Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - A bill was approved in South Africa's parliament that will regulate online gambling in the country. It follows a few months of developments, at one time opening up to the idea of a regulated market, then backtracking and opposing it. Although the current status of online gambling is undetermined, the South African market is estimated at billions of rand annually. The new bill, which must be signed by President Thabo Mbeki in order to officially pass, will regulate this market. The situation has simply been too wasteful for the government, and dangerous for South Africans. A memorandum attached to the National Gambling Amendment Bill says the situation "has resulted in a considerable loss of revenue to the national fiscus and compromises the country's reputation as a responsible global citizen." But above all, according to the bill's stated goal, is to "ensure that all gambling activities are conducted responsibly, fairly and honestly (and to) protect minors and other vulnerable persons from the negative effects of gambling." (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 23, 2008 02:22:12 AM May 16th, 2008 - Online Gambling Loses This Poker Hand
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - Poker players and the entire online gambling community in the United States were looking forward to this day. Will the court's decision against Lee Rousso's challenge of the online gambling ban take the wind out of their sails? According to the poker player, attorney and activist Lee Rousso, the answer is a clear No. True, poker and online gambling of any form will remain illegal under Washington state law; no news from the King County Superior Court judge on that. But poker did get a fair chance, and the lawsuit is only a first step in what is surely to be a long process. Rousso repeated his intentions, which he shared with Online Casino Reports in an interview earlier this month, that he will go all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary. Rousso walked out to the Poker Players Alliance members outside the court house after the hearing and said: "There is virtually no public support for this law." (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 16, 2008 01:01:25 PM May 9th, 2008 - Party Gaming Returning to US Market?
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
Online-Casinos.com - London-listed online gambling group Party Gaming plc could achieve a settlement of its U.S. position with Department of Justice officials before the year is out, Chief Executive Officer Mitch Garber told business reporters this week. Garber, who leaves Party Gaming on 1st May 2009, said his departure would not impact such a settlement.
The company, which exited the United States market following the enactment of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in late 2006, has been in negotiations with the U.S. authorities for some months, apparently seeking a settlement on its pre-UIGEA activities which would obviate any risk of retrospective prosecution. Such a settlement would considerably strengthen the company by removing uncertainties flowing from the American legal situation. According to AFX News, Forbes and other media reportage, Garber told reporters that discussions on the issue were progressing in a constructive manner, generating confidence that a resolution could be reached this (2008) year. (more)
Added to Feed: Monday May 12, 2008 11:31:36 AM May 3rd, 2008 - The End of the Danish Online Gambling Monopoly!
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker, Poker
Online Casino Reports - Denmark's municipal court has ruled recently that online poker tournaments are legal. This as well as several other elements, have contributed to the decision to loosen Denmark's ban on online gambling. Denmark's Minister for Taxation, Kristian Jensen, said in a radio interview that the country is looking into reform of the online casino industry. The new policy would require foreign bookmakers to "live up to the strict regulations we Denmark have for those who want to offer legal gambling in Denmark," the Minister said. European Court of Justice Poland, which has recently announced its change in policy towards online gambling, France, Holland and Germany, which have also shown signs to different extant in this direction, have all been under fire recently for their monopolistic practices. A European Court of Justice decision regarding the Italian protectionist policy, which ruled against the use of criminal law to ban online casinos located elsewhere in Europe, reported here in March 2007, has led to the pragmatist approach by Denmark. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday May 03, 2008 05:38:43 PM May 2nd, 2008 - BetonSports Founder Has Some Charges Dismissed
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
Gambling911 - A federal judge recommended the US drop tax evasion and obstruction charges against Gary Kaplan, the imprisoned founder of bankrupt British on line gambling company BetonSports Plc. Kaplan, 49, would still face charges of conspiracy and violating US Internet gambling laws. According to eGaming Review Magazine: Court documents from the US District Court of Missouri relating to the case brought by the US government against Betonsports founder Gary Kaplan on tax evasion charges, reveal that Kaplan is arguing that he did not violate tax laws because “no wagering excise tax was owed by him because the wagers either were not accepted in the Unites States or were not placed by a person who was in the United States”. The document adds: “Questions of venue in criminal cases are not merely matters of former legal procedure. They raise deep issues of public policy.” The response from the prosecution adds that while the US government “argues that the defendant was subject to the wagering excise tax pursuant to defendant’s status as owner and operator of various specified gambling entities doing business in the United States”, the court found “the defendant’s arguments persuasive”. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:41:23 PM April 30th, 2008 - Lack of UIGEA Regulations Frustrate Senator Kyl
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
UPI - U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., says he is growing impatient with the slow progress in coming up with regulations on Internet gambling in the United States. Kyl, who has been pushing for a ban on Internet gambling, says slow progress on the part of the government and the Federal Reserve is part of the problem, along with a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would block enforcement of any regulations. "The people who are violating the law need to know that they're not going to be able to get away with it and I think that the failure to get these regulations promulgated on time has perhaps given some hope and it's given life even to an idea over in the House of Representatives to put a moratorium on the regulations," Kyl told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Kyl warned that the ease of online access will only exasperate the troubles caused by compulsive gambling. The newspaper said that federal officials have said the slow progress in crafting a ban is due in part to the lack of a definition of illegal Internet gambling. There are also doubts that Internet gambling could be fully curbed.
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:31:29 PM April 26th, 2008 - Chuck E. Cheese Faces Illegal Gambling Charges
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
WSAV.com - The South Carolina House of Representatives was worried about the possibility of video poker coming back to the state. So this week, the house killed a bill to allow children’s games that offer prizes. Lawmakers say right now, technically, skee-ball and other games that offer tokens or tickets that are traded in for prizes are against the state's gambling law. That means your child playing a game at Chuck E- Cheese and winning a teddy bear breaks the law. There was a bill to allow an exception for the children's games, but the house voted against it. "I think it is drafted in such a way that it would create a loophole to basically get us video poker back, where you're paid off in merchandise rather than cash," says SC Rep. Jim Harrison|(R) Columbia. Even though they killed the bill, lawmakers say police have better things to do than arrest children for playing skee-ball. So even though the games might technically break the law, it's not enforced. The state law enforcement division does confiscate illegal video poker machines though, and makes cases against the machines' owners.
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:31:11 PM April 25th, 2008 - Poland Next to Regulate Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Casino, Online Poker
Online Casino Reports - Poland is closer than ever to regulate online gambling. Deputy Minister of Finance, Marek Kapica, said earlier this week that Poland is ready to move on with legalizing and regulating online gambling before the end of the year. Poland's official change of mind comes following the court decision on the Placanica case. The Italian court ruled that Italy cannot use criminal law to ban online gambling companies from elsewhere in Europe from catering to Italian players. The Italian ruling and examples of countries that have successfully stimulated their economy by allowing online gambling, have opened up Poland's government to the idea. Kapica expressed this notion when he said: "We cannot control this process anyway and it is better that the budget at least derives some revenues from it."
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:30:50 PM April 25th, 2008 - French Government Mulls Legalizing Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
Dow Jones - The French government said Thursday it is considering legalizing online gambling. Prime Minister Francois Fillon's office said it is studying a report it commissioned last November into how the online gambling market might be opened up in France. Currently, all internet-based games involving money are outlawed in France, except for the French lottery monopoly Francaise des Jeux and pari-mutuel (or pool betting) horse betting monopoly PMU, which offer online betting and scratchcards. Within the last year, some heads of foreign online gambling operators have been arrested in France for breach of French gambling laws. The report identifies three possibilities for opening up the tightly regulated French market: issuing licenses limiting online betting to sporting events, including betting on card games, or licensing all games except lotteries. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:30:28 PM April 24th, 2008 - "Irresponsible" Online Gambling Advert Banned
Category: Gaming / Casinos, Online Casino, News, Online Poker, Poker
Reuters - A gambling advertisement that claimed online betting would improve sexual prowess and self esteem has become one of the first campaigns to be banned under tough new laws, following criticism from the advertising watchdog. The national press campaign for online casino Paddy Power was irresponsible in linking gambling to "seduction, sexual success and enhanced attractiveness," the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled. The advert, published in the Times, featured a dwarf in a limousine flanked by two beautiful women, smoking a cigar and holding up a champagne glass. A strapline accompanying the advert said: "Who says you can't make money being short?" The ASA, in a separate ruling, also criticized a gambling television advertisement campaign that featured "slapstick, juvenile humor that was likely to appeal to children." (more)
Added to Feed: Friday May 02, 2008 01:30:05 PM April 24th, 2008 - McCain Not a Sports Betting Fan
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
Sportsmemo.com - I’ve been periodically writing about the upcoming presidential election, discussing the various candidates' positions on gaming related issues as well as the potential for future legalization and regulation of the internet betting industry. Today, I’ll be writing about Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who has been rapidly gaining in the polls in recent weeks, with the Democratic nomination process dragging on and on. There was a point earlier this year in which McCain and the Republicans were big underdogs in the offshore betting marketplace, but that is no longer the case. Right now, the race between McCain and whoever emerges victorious from the Clinton-Obama bloodbath can be expected to be very tight once again, perhaps just as tight as each of the last two presidential elections which each came down to a single key state (Florida in Bush’s 2000 win over Al Gore; Ohio in Bush’s 2004 victory over John Kerry). I’m a one issue voter. My issue is slightly broader than just gambling – I look for candidates that support the concept of ‘personal freedom’ in the classic libertarian sense. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday April 25, 2008 01:38:19 AM April 23rd, 2008 - Treasury Department Shouldn't Waste Tme with Online Gambling
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
The Hill - A bipartisan group of House Financial Services Committee members have warned U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve officials not to waste any more time trying to implement a ban on online gambling. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), the chairman of the panel, along with Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Pete King (R-N.Y.), sent a letter Tuesday to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke telling them to hold off on writing new regulations based on the law governing Internet gambling, which was approved by the Republican-majority Congress in 2006. The lawmakers, who said they are determined to overturn the law, highlighted issues they said are more important priorities for the nation's financial institutions, such as the home mortgage crisis. "We believe it would be imprudent for you to devote additional agency resources to this Sisyphean task, especially as we intend to vigorously pursue legislation to prevent the implementation of these regulations," the members said. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday April 22, 2008 11:58:06 PM April 22nd, 2008 - Calvin Ayre Announces Retirement from Bodog
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker
RGT Online - Calvin Ayre, the internationally noted billionaire playboy founder of Bodog, will be retiring from his largely ceremonial role as the face of Bodog. Additionally he will no longer be involved in Bodog operationally. In mid 2007 he successfully transferred ownership of the Bodog brand in North America to the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group. Internationally Bodog has put in place a very competent and significantly European executive team that is already managing Bodog Europe and Africa and plans to further expand to Latin America. Ayre will be taking some time to himself in his home in Antigua and will continue to support charitable opportunities through the Calvin Ayre Foundation. Ayre noted that, "While it has been great fun to live my life in front of the world's cameras and online though my blog, I am looking forward to a more private and meaningful period of giving back and working to support the Calvin Ayre Foundation." (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday April 22, 2008 11:52:58 PM April 21st, 2008 - 'Deal Or No Deal' Escapes Gambling Lawsuit
Category: Poker, Online Casino, Gaming / Casinos, News
WGAL.com - Georgia's highest court has thrown out a lawsuit contending that the game show violated state anti-gambling laws when it invited viewers to take part in a game via text message. A couple wanted NBC to repay them and other state residents for the cost of sending 99-cent text messages in hopes of winning a prize on the hit show's "Lucky Case Game." NBC attorneys, however, said the game was a promotional tool and not a lottery. In its ruling, the court said the text messages cannot be classified as a bet or a wager, and the state law "offers no avenue of recovery" for the couple.
Added to Feed: Monday April 21, 2008 11:48:30 PM April 17th, 2008 - Washington State Poker Court Case Set for May 15
Category: Online Gambling, Online Poker, Poker, News, Gaming / Casinos
Online Casino Reports - Over the past several months, we have followed the court case of poker player Lee Rousso, who has challenged his state's gambling laws. A court appearance, which was scheduled for April 25, was postponed this week yet again, and is now scheduled for May 15. The Seattle lawyer has been waiting, as we have all, for some time now for his opportunity to voice his critique of and challenge the constitutional legality of Washington State's ban on online gambling. Washington state legal representatives have persistently managed to postpone the court date, mainly by asking for large amounts of personal information, the relevance of which was dubious to begin with. And indeed, Rousso has claimed the information asked of him was personal. Under the Fifth Amendment, he reminded them, he is protected and should not be required to hand it over. Judge Mary E. Roberts has accepted his appeal on the matter this week, following an unfavorable ruling earlier in the process by the King County Superior Court. (more)
Added to Feed: Friday April 18, 2008 01:35:43 AM April 14th, 2008 - Epassporte Poker Deposit Option Alternative: Poker Echecks
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling, Poker, Online Poker
PR Web - PokerEcheck.com has released a new information page explaining Instant Poker Echecks and the sites that accept them, namely, Poker Stars and Full Tilt Online Poker Rooms. In recent days many US poker players have found they are no longer able to deposit or withdraw from online poker rooms using Epassporte. This decision has not been made in a formal announcement, but has been leaked through many online forums. Poker Echecks are a great alternative to Epassporte. Poker Echecks are fast, reliable and safe. Players only need a checking account to use Instant Poker Echecks from where they mainly need to provide their routing number and account number to their preferred online poker room. Poker Echecks are as fast as credit card deposits and the funds are immediately available for play. In some cases they can even be used to cash out. Currently there are only a few rooms using Poker Echecks. Poker Stars and Full Tilt(Beta Testing). Both sites are leaders in the online poker community. They both offer great software, game selection, and customer support. Visit PokerEcheck.com for full reviews of both sites as well as tutorials, which will help players become familiar to Poker Echeck deposits. (more)
Added to Feed: Tuesday April 15, 2008 01:22:37 AM April 12th - Congress Moves to Suspend Internet Gambling Ban
Category: Online Casino, Online Gambling, Poker, News, Gaming / Casinos
Secure Internet Gambling Initiative - The Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative (SSIGI) announced its support for new legislation, H.R.5767, that would prohibit the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System from proposing, prescribing or implementing any regulations related to the current ban on Internet gambling, as required by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). The bill was introduced yesterday by Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas). The Frank-Paul bill would stop the U.S. government from taking any further steps on regulations that would require all of the countrys financial institutions to block Internet Gambling payments, said SSIGI spokesman Jeff Sandman. Its a bold move, but a necessary one, in light of the warnings from the Treasury and Federal Reserve that they did not know how to write regulations to solve the problems created by UIGEA. Further, witnesses representing a broad spectrum of the financial services community unanimously stated that the current ban on Internet gambling is dangerous to the payments system and ineffective in stopping people from using the Internet to play poker, make bets on horses, or engage in other types of wagering. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday April 12, 2008 02:18:56 PM April 11th, 2008 - Epassporte Shut Down US Poker Deposits?
Category: Online Gambling, News, Gaming / Casinos, Online Poker
PR Web - All poker sites that use Epassporte pulled the poker deposit option from the cashier queue on Friday afternoon after deposits quit working. Compatiblepoker is recommending that players who want to continue to play to do so by using poker echecks at Pokerstars.com which is an instant deposit option for all players. The situation is still very unclear. The poker sites themselves have not received a statement as to why deposits are not working. They are telling customers that Epassporte is currently not in use for customers from the US but remain vague as to why. On the other hand Epassporte support has been quoted as saying this is all a technical error and there has been no policy changes. The poker sites were not informed this and it is now common knowledge the customer support at ewallet companies are usually the last to know of major changes. (more)
Added to Feed: Saturday April 12, 2008 02:19:06 PM April 9th, 2008 - Time to Fold US Gambling Ban
Category: Gaming / Casinos, News, Online Gambling
Wall Street Journal - A trans-Atlantic spat over online gambling may help rewrite the rules of the game for Internet commerce across borders. For a change, the Europeans stand on the side of free trade, while America dabbles in regulatory overreach. The European Union last month launched an internal probe into whether the U.S. Justice Department selectively enforces its antigambling laws against European online firms that offer wagers on sports events. Brussels is making a narrow legal point that Washington discriminates against Europeans by simultaneously permitting U.S. Internet horse betting. That's against World Trade Organization rules, and the case may end up there. The U.S. last year lost a similar WTO online gambling case against Antigua and Barbuda. The island nation argued that U.S. online gambling rules violated Washington's GATT commitments to open its market in "recreational, cultural and sporting services. |
