Kentucky Bans Extended to Neighboring States (Update)

November 4, 2008 (InfoPowa News) — The attempt by the state of Kentucky to hijack the international domains of online gambling companies continued to be a source of inconvenience and irritation to U.S. players this week as the Jackpot Factory group extended software provider Microgaming's ban on Kentucky players to embrace neighboring states pending proof of residence.
 
Last month Microgaming casinos started excluding Kentucky players from licensee sites following a shocking ruling by a Kentucky county court that global domains could be seized if owner companies did not exclude Kentucky players from gambling websites.
 
The Jackpot Factory group, one of Microgaming's larger licensees, emailed players in states bordering Kentucky this week, telling them that due to recent changes in Kentucky legislation, as of Thursday, November 6th, it would temporarily block accounts of players whose IP addresses trace to a neighboring state.
 
Players can reinstate their accounts by producing proof of ID and residence in a neighboring state. Residents of Kentucky remain blocked.
 
Players with enquiries or problems were invited to contact [email protected].
 
The domain seizure cases in Kentucky have caused a major international uproar on jurisdictional, legal, and constitutional grounds and are currently the subject of appeals by individual companies, trade associations and Net Neutrality bodies. Merge Poker Network and Microgaming have both instituted precautionary bans on Kentucky players until the local court debacle can be resolved through Superior Court litigation.