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UIGEA – A BURDEN WITHOUT BENEFIT
Competitive Enterprise Institute critical of attempt to use financial institutions to cripple online gamblingThe Competitive Enterprise Institute in the United States has come out strongly against the use of financial institutions to cripple online gambling in the United States following a study of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. The act remains mired in a lack of clear regulations following widespread criticism of its impractcality.
Following a study of the implications of requiring the US financial industry to police unclear government enforcement policy on Internet gambling, the Institute claimed this week that the current laws have had damaging if unintended consequences far beyond their original target.
The report explains that the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), passed in October of 2006, has little to do with gambling itself, but is actually a wide-ranging regulatory mandate on banks, credit unions, credit card companies, wire transfer services, and even brokerages. The law forces financial institutions to cut off business with any entity that could possibly be engaged in online gambling transactions.
“The Act is unlikely to stop Internet gambling and could even threaten the stable, smooth operation of America’s banking system,” said Senior Fellow Eli Lehrer and author of the study Time to Fold the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act .
“UIGEA and its currently proposed enabling regulations will undermine the financial privacy of all Americans and reduce the security of their bank accounts. In short, it makes almost no financial, social, or economic sense.”
Some members of Congress are at least aware of the problems with the gambling ban. On April 2nd, the House Committee on Financial Services is scheduled to hold a hearing titled “Proposed UIGEA Regulations: Burden without Benefit?” to detail what has gone wrong with its implementation and how to fix it. Ideally, however, they would go much further.
“Even before it considers proposals for the regulation of online gambling, Congress should consider an outright repeal of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act,” said Lehrer. “The law has very little to do with gambling and serves as a poorly thought-out banking regulation fraught with potentially perverse incentives. Quite simply, it is a bad law. Repealing it makes sense.”
UIGEA LAW TOO AMBIGUOUS TO WORK SAY HEARING WTINESSES
Widespread media coverage for Congressional hearings on Washington’s problem lawThe US and international media gave extensive coverage to April 2nd’s Congressional hearings on the hopelessly bogged down Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act regulations, with the consensus across a wide cross section of witnesses appearing to be that the law was just too ambiguous to work, and could have a serious adverse impact on e-commerce.
In opening the discussions, “Proposed UIGEA Regulations: Burden without Benefit?” Congressman Luis Gutierrez, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade and Technology, said: “The focus of today’s Subcommittee hearing is the proposed regulations to implement the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.
Gutierrez went on to summarise the status of the regulations, long delayed but finally submitted for discussion in October 2007 and the subject of over 200 formal critiques that mainly complained of the ambiguity of the regulations and the impracticalities and cost of implementing same.
“One of the most common complaints is that the proposed rules fail to sufficiently define key terms, leaving financial institutions with significant compliance difficulties,” Gutierrez said. “For example, the regulation fails to adequately define what constitutes “unlawful Internet gambling” or a “restricted transaction,” yet requires the financial institutions to make a determination on their own about what is lawful or unlawful.
“Consumers will be placed at risk of having lawful transactions blocked. It is easy to see how these regulations, if implemented in their current form, could wreak havoc on electronic commerce in the U.S.”
The Congressman went on to give examples of the disruption the law could cause in areas of the economy such as general international remittances, and the heavy burden compliance would place on a financial services industry already labouring under overload during a time of economic and financial turmoil.
“Finally, I believe it is inappropriate to have financial institutions essentially acting as the final arbiter in determining which transactions are legal or illegal; especially when the result could be closing a consumer’s account,” he said.
Feds admit to difficulties in crafting the regulations
Federal Reserve and Treasury officials gave evidence that they were struggling to craft the UIGEA rules because federal law is unclear about what type of gambling is illegal online.
“That is something we’re really struggling with,” Louise Roseman, the Fed’s director of reserve bank operations and payment systems, said.
“The challenge we have is interpreting … federal laws that Congress itself isn’t sure what they mean,” Roseman said, adding that one company that processes illegal Internet gambling transactions may also transact legitimate transfers which should not be blocked, thus making it almost impossible, or at least very difficult, to determine how to block illegal online gambling transactions.
“It will be very difficult to shut off payment systems for use of Internet gambling transactions. The implementing statute will not be iron clad at all,” she concluded.
Director Roseman reiterated her comments in an interview with Talk Radio News, an service that provides information through its Washington branch to the White House, Capitol Hill and Pentagon staffed bureaus, and a New York office with a United Nations staffed bureau.
Congress passed the UIGEA late in 2006, in a rushed, late night session as the then Republican-controlled Congress was about to recess for electioneering, and after the legislation was tacked on to a totally unrelated “must pass” bill. The legislation seeks to cripple the online gambling industry in the US, conservatively estimated to be worth $8 billion annually, by prohibiting financial transactions with online gambling companies.
Congress instructed the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department, in consultation with the Justice Department, to come up with rules to enforce the newly passed act, and government drafters have been struggling with the task ever since.
Associated Press commented on the hearings, reporting that federal officials gave evidence that Congress’ ban on Internet gambling is so vague that figuring out how to enforce it is a struggle.
Whilst the Congressional ban sought to explicitly outlaw Internet gambling, it didn’t offer a clear definition that everyone could agree on, instead referring to existing federal and state laws which themselves are ambiguous and provoke differing interpretations. It places the burden on financial institutions by prohibiting them from accepting payments from credit cards, checks or electronic fund transfers to settle online wagers. The regulation doesn’t attempt a definition of illegal online gambling, since Congress didn’t give one.
Bankers protest at the burden
Wayne Abernathy of the American Bankers Association told the committee that the law “makes financial institutions the police, prosecutors and judges in place of real law enforcement officers.”
“The UIGEA and the Proposed Rule do not provide a rational path towards halting unlawful Internet gambling,” Abernathy said. “The path leads to an increased cost and administrative burden to the banks and an erosion in the performance of the payments system, but it will not result in stopping illegal Internet gambling transactions.
“Imposing this enormous unfunded law enforcement mandate on banks in place of the government’s law enforcement agencies is not likely to be a successful public policy.”
Given that financial institutions process nearly 100 billion payments a year, according to Federal Reserve data, and given that other governments won’t necessarily be cooperating, identifying which payments are gambling-related is no trivial task, said Leigh Williams, who spoke on behalf of the Financial Services Roundtable, which counts Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and other banks as members.
The U.S. government’s “decision not to fully define unlawful Internet gambling places our members in a very difficult position,” he said. “They cannot know if a transaction is restricted unless they have in hand specifics of the transaction that in almost all instances they will not have.”
Williams expressed concerns that enforcement of the proposed rules “…could impose significant compliance burdens on financial institutions by increasing their role in policing illegal activities, determining whether a transaction is illegal, or by imposing ambiguous compliance requirements that could be subject to wide variations in interpretation by regulators and law enforcement agencies. We believe these functions are more appropriate for law enforcement agencies.”
At the very least, Williams said, the U.S. government should provide a list of names of Internet gambling businesses that can be identified and blocked – something that the authorities are unwilling to do. Federal regulators have said it would be too expensive for them to create a list themselves, arguing that “the government must engage in an extensive legal analysis to determine whether the gambling Web site is used, at least in part, to place, receive or otherwise knowingly transmit unlawful bets or wagers” and that due process safeguards “would result in considerable added costs.”
Clearly with that Federal position in mind, Williams pointed out that ‘monitoring of websites’ was “…inappropriate to include in a financial institution’s monitoring activity.”
Other groups protested that the law does not apply to them. Poker players contend they’re not covered because poker is a game of skill and not chance. Horse-racing was exempted by Congress in a notorious carve-out that has created expensive World Trade Organisation hassles for the USA, yet without settling definitively whether online wagering on races breaks the law.
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, who has introduced a bill to overturn UIGEA that is steadily gaining co-sponsors in Washington, described the UIGEA as “…a rather bizarre piece of legislation.”
The committee heard that the law has caused international disputes, including an investigation launched earlier this month by the European Union after European betting companies complained that Washington’s actions against them were protectionist and infringing world trade rules.
Nevada’s casino industry is reportedly neutral on the regulations, instead supporting a bill written by Nevada Democrat Shelley Berkley, that calls for a full and independent study of online gambling in its entirety.
Closing the first part of the hearings, chairman Gutierrez advised Ms. Louise Roseman from the Federal Reserve Bank, and Ms. Valerie Abend from the Department of Treasury, to tread very carefully in proceeding with the proposed regulations. He remarked that there was more heated discussion, debate, and criticism of this topic than on any other his committee has seen in the year he has presided over it; “So be careful,” he said.
Anti-online gambling politician Spencer Bachus – a Republican Congressman from Alabama, was almost alone in defending the UIGEA, again presenting a letter signed by 45 Attorneys General supporting the law, and again recounting the now ageing story of a high school student who robbed a bank to pay off an online gambling debt.
“Illegal Internet gambling is a scourge on our society that leads to addiction and gambling addicts then turn to crime to support their habit,” Bachus said, adding that in his opinion US banks have no problem working with law enforcement in ferreting out money-laundering and terrorist financing.
Addressing the letter from the Attorneys General, Congressman Frank pointed out that in his new law, the Internet Gambling Enforcement and Regulation Act (IGREA), there is a stipulation that allows individual states to opt out of allowing Internet gambling anyway.
Privacy concerns
Frank later made a telling point to the committee – that in the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve’s 52-page draft regulations for the UIGEA, the word “identify” appears 61 times and “monitor” 18 times, yet the important word “Privacy” appears not once. Frank told financial industry witnesses that there was “…a conflict between the obligation imposed on you by the act…and the privacy expectations of your customers.”
Several witnesses voiced concern at the apparent hypocrisy of a law that allegedly existed for moral reasons, yet permitted and even encouraged extensive gambling via the Internet on horse racing, fantasy sports and lotteries through legislative carve-outs.
Congressman Ron Paul, the libertarian-minded Republican presidential candidate, criticised the UIGEA, saying “..people should make their own decisions” regarding the use of their disposable income in the privacy of their own homes.
“Though I do not endorse gambling per se, people should make their own decisions. It’s a personal choice. I’ve always been concerned about this type of regulation and legislation – it’s likely to open the door (to control and regulation) of the Internet itself,” he said.
The Hill, a Washington DC publication widely read by politicians, reported on the hearings, saying that Congressman Frank and his IGREA were betting on exposing the UIGEA’s “…murky language” to help overturn it altogether. The publication went on to cover the testimony of the many witnesses, most of whom were critical of the UIGEA and its impracticalities and difficulty in implementation.
Lobbyist groups such as the Poker Players’ Alliance and the American Bankers Association have spent millions of dollars fighting to repeal the law, The Hill observed.
Economic hard times, the restructuring of the Federal Reserve and the country’s monetary policy are only adding fuel to opponents’ fire, the report commented, quoting Congressman Frank, who said the Financial Services Committee as well as the banks and the Federal Reserve should be more focused on predatory lending right now instead of trying to crack down on people’s personal habits.
“Almost every sector affected by the (UIGEA) law complains about it,” said Frank, who argued the law turns banks into “gambling cops.”
Frank also said the law’s arbitrary exclusion for horse racing didn’t make any sense to him. “I thought it was gambling; perhaps it’s animal husbandry,” the politician quipped.
Ted Kitada from Wells Fargo said that his company is involved in 30 million transactions a day. Figuring out which of those could be related to Internet gambling is not only cumbersome, but it could lead to mistakes that annoy customers, especially because Internet gambling sites could disguise themselves, he opined.
Jeffrey Sandman, a spokesman for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative, said that, “U.S. banks and credit card companies, along with every other type of U.S. company involved in payment systems, would be forced to spend substantial resources to comply with a ban on Internet gambling that can be easily circumvented by anyone in the U.S. that wants to continue to gamble online.
“Testimony from the federal regulators and representatives of the financial services community made clear today that the prohibition on Internet gambling isn’t working now and will not work in the future,” he added.
In summary, the Congressional hearings this week gave an opportunity for expert testimony to be heard and widely reported, providing further evidence that the ban on Internet gambling intended through the UIGEA simply won’t work. Witnesses almost unanimously agreed that U.S. financial service companies would face serious regulatory burdens in attempting to enforce the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA), a law that is not likely to stop millions of Americans from gambling online.
Testimony provided at the hearing can be found at http://www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/hr040208.shtml.
KNOW YOUR ENEMY
Prime Table Games active in run-up to Congressional hearings on Internet gamblingTimed to precede Wednesday’s Congressional hearings on Internet gambling and the implications of the problematical Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), a land casino supplier has come out strongly against the online industry in an expensive, full page statement in the global edition of the respected Wall Street Journal.
Derek Webb, founder of Las Vegas-based Prime Table Games which placed the advert has featured in previous in anti-online gambling attacks.
Headlined “Who Will Face the Issues,” the WSJ statement outlines the perceived regulatory problems associated with international Internet gaming, citing gaming fraud, consumer protection and protection of intellectual property rights as major concerns.
“It is well known that there are off-shore based Internet gaming operators who are engaged in deceptive practices with American consumers and international players, and there is no adequate system in place to ensure full and appropriate regulation. Congress needs to take action soon, or these practices will only get worse,” the statement asserts.
Prime Table Games urges Congress to adopt specific regulatory strategies for online gambling consumer protection, including:
Limitations on solicitations and incentives to gamble, such as bonuses and cash back
Prohibition of affiliate relationships
Standard player verification procedures
Giving players the ability to self-exclude and have it automatically apply to all online gambling sites
Site operators assume responsibility for identity verification
Internet gambling sites be required to verify that players can afford to gamble at their chosen level.
Internet gambling debts shouldn’t be legally recoverable, and players who don’t pay gambling debts should automatically be placed on an exclusion list.“Internet gaming, by its very nature, has great potential for abuse,” Webb said in a supporting press release. “Site operators also should pay fees towards problem gambling treatment and research.”
On Wednesday, the House Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade and Technology will meet to discuss the proposed and much criticised UIGEA regulations.
CASINO ACTION LATEST – LIQUIDATOR’S WEBSITE
Poker players now have a destination for their claims in Tusk debaclePlayers at Casino Action poker websites, which were not taken over in the rescue operation by Casino Rewards (see previous InfoPowa reports) now have an online venue where claims against the Tusk Corporation which owned Casino Action can be lodged.
Tusk has gone into liquidation, with the Brisbane based liquidator Sims Partners overseeing the process according to an update press release from Microgaming this week.
Sims has apparently added Tusk Corporation to the ‘companies currently in administration’ section of its website, along with contact details for any claim. The page can be found at http://www.simspartners.com.au/creditors_current-administrations.php and appears under the heading “Tusk Investment Corporation (In Liquidation)”
Microgaming recommends that any player impacted by the Casino Action/Tusk shutdown submit their claim directly to Sims Partners via the web page.
The Australians behind Tusk Corporation remained in the shadows this week, apparently eschewing any obligation to communicate with the public or their former players on the failure of their company.
SMART MOBILE MOVE BY LADBROKES
Brit betting group will temporarily take over mobile portalThe UK gambling group Ladbrokes has a bold addition to its marketing plan for the Grand National horse race taking place this weekend – it is taking over the busy home page of the Planet 3 mobile portal for 24 hours.
The bookmaking giant is reportedly keen to extend its cross-platform presence for the UK’s largest single sports betting event.
The campaign, booked by the mobile agency Inside, comes hot on the heels of Ladbrokes’ first bout of mobile display advertising, which took place last week in the run-up to the Cheltenham Festival.
Launched in 2005, Planet 3 is owned by Hutchison Whampoa of Hong Kong, and claims it is “not a telco, not a media company, not a technology company, but all three,” according to CEO Bob Fuller.
Fuller claimed that 3 was the embodiment of convergence, the long-anticipated coming together of the entertainment and telecom industries. As Britain’s first “third generation” or 3G mobile company, 3 had more experience, and more understanding of what customers want, than its larger rivals, he said. ITV and Sky believe that mobile is the future of media, and the BBC is moving in that direction, he opined.
The device that will put all this entertainment into the hands of consumers “…won’t be the iPod, it won’t be a portable games console . . . in time it will be the mobile phone”.
DUTCH SETBACK FOR UNIBET
Netherlands appeal court supports prior local rulingThe dispute between Dutch gambling monopoly De Lotto and London-based online betting firm Unibet over access to Dutch gamblers could escalate to a higher European court following an appeals court decision against Unibet in the Netherlands last week.
The appeal was launched by Unibet following a decision by a court in Utrecht last October to impose punitive fines on Unibet for its continued advertising and attempts to facilitate Dutch wagering on football games. De Lotto laid the charges which resulted in the court ruling against Unibet, ordering it to stop taking bets from Dutch citizens and imposing a non-compliance penalty of Euro 100 000 per day up to a maximum of Euro 3 million.
Unibet contended that in terms of European Union treaty obligations it was entitled to access the Dutch market.
Earlier this month a judge in Utrecht provisionally ordered Unibet to immediately cease its Dutch activities in interim proceedings that the Dutch Lotto company again instigated.
This week a De Lotto spokesman claimed the monopoly has prevailed in the appeal, although confirmation on this was not yet available from Unibet. Media reports from the Netherlands indicate that the appeal ruling is the 17th occasion on which Dutch judges have ruled against EU companies seeking to access the Dutch online gambling market.
The appeal court ruling is of particular interest in that it noted that its interpretation of the law differed from the European Union treaty calling for free movement of goods and services between European Union member nations.
The Dutch appeal court is reported to have acknowledged that the European Union did not share its opinion on the issue and that proceedings against the Netherlands over access to the Dutch online gambling market are likely to occur.
Going back as far as 2006 the European Commission has urged Dutch compliance with the EU trade accords, and it has recently increased the pressure. Continued non-compliance could result in the issue being escalated to the European Court of Justice.
Commenting on the appeal finding, De Lotto director Tjeerd Veenstra remained adamant that his company would not back down: “Illegal gambling threatens both the integrity of the sport as well as donations to the sport and other good aims. That is the reason why [De Lotto] fights rock hard for the conservation of these interests.”
Since its establishment in 1961, De Lotto has made substantial donations to Dutch sport totalling Euro 1.1 billion, the company has repeatedly asserted.
PRESSURE BUILDS ON USTR REGARDING WTO SETTLEMENT
National security is not an acceptable response, say leading politiciansThe US Trade Representative at the World Trade Organisation was faced with some pointed questions on witholding information by two influential Congressmen this week.
Barney Frank, chairman of the powerful House Financial Services Committee, and Ron Paul, the ranking member of the House Sub-committee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade and Technology were following up on media reports that Susan C Schwab’s office had declined to release details of a trade deal with the EU, Japan and Canada on grounds of “national security” when this information was requested by freelance journo Ed Brayton (see previous InfoPowa report)
The settlement concerned compensation for the unilateral withdrawal by the USTR of American WTO obligations on gambling.
In a letter dated March 14 to Schwab the two Congressmen not only requested details of the settlement, but asked for a justification of the use of the “national security” classification to withold this information.
“We find this (citation of national security) unacceptable,” the Congressmen wrote. “If, in fact, there were some additional trade concessions that were made that do have national security implications, we request a secure briefing on those issues.”
However, the letter adds: “If this is merely an attempt to avoid revealing the cost of these trade concessions, either because they would be viewed too costly by the United States or not costly enough by the negotiating countries, this Freedom of Information Act denial on the grounds of ‘national security’ would appear to be a misuse of the FOIA process.”
The letter concludes: “Ultimately, we believe that this withdrawal (by the USTR of gambling obligations at the WTO) was a mistake, because it is in furtherance of a policy – the UIGEA – which is an inappropriate interference with the personal freedoms of American citizens that we are working to undo.”
The letter ends with the expectation that the USTR will furnish a prompt response.
USTR MISSES ANOTHER WTO DEADLINE
Online gambling dispute with Antigua and Barbuda rolls onAs March faded into April this week it appeared that the US Trade Representative at the World Trade Organisation had once again missed a crucial deadline in its dispute with the government of Antigua and Barbuda over online gambling.
The Antigua Sun newspaper, which has been diligently following the many twists and turns in this long-running saga, reported that no word on the issue had been received by the Caribbean islanders. Neither Antigua and Barbuda’s attorney in the matter Mark Mendel nor the local Directorate of Gaming has received any communication from US officials.
In a process that has seen many delays and missed deadlines, the apparent failure of the US to put forward a settlement proposal by the end of the month was apparently met with an air of resignation in Antigua and Barbuda, with officials continuing to adopt a “wait and see” approach to the protracted negotiations process.
The settlement proposal has the potential to end the trade battle over Internet gaming which has dragged on for more than five years.
Mendel has made it clear that any settlement would be expected to address the United States’ failure to comply with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) ruling on non-discriminatory US access for Internet gaming operators as well as Antigua and Barbuda’s claim for compensation following the unilateral US withdrawal of its commitment to provide market access to the sector under the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services.
The former issue was the subject of a US$21 million sanction award against the US by a WTO Dispute Settlement Body arbitrator last December.
On the latter issue Antigua and Barbuda filed a notice in January requesting arbitration by the WTO.
$2.5 MILLION ONLINE MAHJONG INVESTMENT BY CRYPTOLOGIC
Another step in Internet gambling provider’s move into AsiaCryptoLogic Limited continued its advance into the Asian market this week by making a strategic investment in Mahjong Time, an innovative provider of online Mahjong software and turnkey solutions.
“Mahjong is a game with an ancient history in China, and a following of well over 600 million worldwide,” said Brian Hadfield, CryptoLogic’s President and CEO, adding that his company is skilled in taking popular pastimes and turning them into online entertainment, and intends to continue working in Asia with partners who share that vision.
In a deal that is expected to close within the next 30 days, CryptoLogic has agreed to invest up to $2.5 million for a significant minority equity stake in Mahjong Time, subject to certain performance thresholds and milestones.
The Asian company has a patented platform created and managed by a team with in-depth Mahjong experience, and earns revenue by licensing its software to gaming operators, who attract business through tournaments, subscriptions, “pay-for-play” models and in-game advertising. Mahjong Time also earns revenue from its own site, MahjongTime.com.
Mahjong Time has a number of unique advantages for operators, claims Hadfield, including more rulesets than any other provider, multiple language versions of its software and advanced gaming features (such as play, watch and archive modes). Players benefit from a secure and robust environment featuring no-download software that supports both subscription and tournament play, as well as a practice mode that teaches the game to newcomers.
Players from 136 countries enjoy social networking through advanced community features at Mahjong Time such as an advanced avatar shop, personalisation engine, friends list, rated competitions and a patented visual “belt” rating and ranking system – all of which are keys to Web 2.0 success in gaming.
Mahjong Time is the official online partner of the North American Mahjong Federation, the European Mahjong Association and national associations in ten European countries, and has developed a unique, officially-certified rating system (MORSE) for use in online tournaments.
The company is also the exclusive online software and platform provider for the World Series of Mahjong, the biggest prize money tournament in the history of the game. Global TV coverage of the WSOM over the next three years will provide a platform to reach millions of enthusiasts across Asia and beyond.
“As a game, Mahjong is about both strategy and community, and that’s the approach we have taken to building our software and our business,” said William Sutjiadi, CEO of Mahjong Time. “CryptoLogic knows great innovation and great software, and together we will build a business with huge global potential.”
PPA REGIONAL DIRECTOR ABANDONS GOVERNSHIP QUEST
But feisty Rousso vows to continue the fight against Washington state’s draconian online gambling lawsLee Rousso, the feisty Seattle lawyer and Poker Players Alliance regional director has abandoned his campaign to unseat Washington state governor Christine Gregoire but says he will continue his fight to overturn the state’s draconian laws against online gamblers.
Rousso cites a US Supreme Court decision upholding the state’s “top two” electoral system as his reason for withdrawing from the gubernatorial race.
Writing on his website at http://leeroussoforgovernor.org/ the pro-poker campaigner announced his withdrawal ‘with a heavy heart and great reluctance’ but emphasised that what he isn’t giving up on his legal challenge to Washington’s Internet gambling ban, which was approved by the Legislature and signed by Gregoire in 2006.
“Even though I am dropping out of the political arena, I will continue to work to change the laws so that Internet poker players can enjoy the Great American Game from the privacy of their own home,” Rousso wrote. “My constitutional challenge to the law is set for a hearing on April 25, 2008. Assuming I get my day in court (something the State is desperate to avoid), I think I have a good chance at winning.
“Meanwhile, I encourage all my supporters to continue to fight the good fight. We are going to win this battle. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday soon.”
iMEGA APPEALS IN U.S. ONLINE GAMBLING LAW CASE
Notice of appeal filed in 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in PhiladelphiaHaving achieved legal standing to litigate in its case against the US government’s UIGEA earlier this year (see previous InfoPowa report) the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA) online gambling trade group has now filed a Notice of Appeal in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals (Philadelphia) to progress its challenge against “policy enforcement” of the UIGEA.
In a press announcement this week the organisation recapped on previous litigation, commenting that the prior ruling by the Honorable Mary L. Cooper contained a great deal of good and yet some bad aspects for iMEGA – and for the rights, the people and the medium it seeks to defend.
“First and foremost, the Court established, with crystal clarity, the standing (and associational standing) of iMEGA to challenge this (UIGEA) law in court,” explains the statement. “This is no small thing. Judge Cooper herself spent 15 pages of her 29-page decision establishing iMEGA’s standing, in the process knocking down the US government’s primary challenge to our suit. iMEGA flat-out beat the government on that point.
“Many legal commentators—both supporters and naysayers—from the beginning viewed the question of iMEGA’s standing as an insurmountable barrier to moving forward. Well, we’ve crossed over that barrier, and now the government has to contend with iMEGA as fully and unquestionably empowered by the Court to assert our rights in the courts of the United States. The fact that the Federal courts have now recognized iMEGA as the champion of the Internet Gambling industry cannot be overstated,” the statement adds.
iMEGA recognises that it failed to obtain a definitive ruling on the “groundbreaking questions we presented, namely, that those fundamental rights we all enjoy – of privacy, speech, expression, and conduct – should not be lessened in any way when we are using the Internet.” Judge Cooper simply affirmed that Congress had the right to pass the law in a constitutional manner – a point iMEGA never challenged.
“As a result, the Court is in essence standing aside and reserving these issues to be decided by a “higher authority,” the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and, potentially, the United States Supreme Court,” iMEGA claims, before emphasising that Judge Cooper acknowledged the failings of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act and, in Footnote 12 on Page 27 of her decision, stated categorically that the “criminal penalties” provided for under the UIGEA do not apply to “financial businesses,” such as “financial transaction providers.”
The statement clarifies that the next step for iMEGA is to continue the battle for the overthrow of the UIGEA in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, an appellate court that has been traditionally protective of the fundamental rights of speech and expression.
“One need only look to that Court’s striking down (multiple times) of the Child Online Protection Act (COPA) – another well intentioned but over-reaching Federal law – for an example of how favorable that Court can be to iMEGA’s challenge,” it avers.
A positive result for iMEGA in the Third Circuit, affirming its “digital civil rights”, would represent a landmark victory with historic consequences.
iMEGA is under no illusions about the magnitude of its next battle, saying that in light of political pressures, it anticipates that the US Justice Department will bring all of its vast resources to the fight. “(But) with the possible exception of the American Banking Association, no one has more precisely and effectively portrayed how faulty the proposed UIGEA regulations are, in the hope of preventing them from being promulgated or weakened to such an extent that they become meaningless,” the statement claims.
“While we were disappointed that Judge Cooper dismissed our (original) lawsuit, this case is far from over. We always knew that this would be the first round in a serious fight, as most important legal battles are. Many legal challenges that lost their first round make up many of the rights Americans now take for granted,” the organisation claims, giving as examples:
Brown v. Board of Education (”Separate but Equal” school systems) – Originally lost in U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
Miranda v. Arizona (Illegal Interrogations) – Originally lost in the Arizona Supreme Court
Gideon v. Wainwright (Right to Counsel) – Originally lost in the Florida Supreme Court and Fourteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida
Tinker v. Des Moines (Freedom of Speech) – Originally lost in U.S. District Court and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.
iMEGA is also currently active on the lobbying front, and president Edward Leyden will provide detailed verbal and written testimony for the Congressional hearing on UIGEA on April 2, 2008 by the House Financial Services Committee, Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade, and Technology.
The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. and will include testimony from representatives from the Federal Reserve System and the U.S. Department of Treasury.
Several representatives of financial institutions are also listed on the witness list, including Harriet May, who will be speaking on behalf of the Credit Union National Association; Wayne Abernathy, representing the American Bankers Association; Leigh Williams, from the Financial Services Roundtable; and Ted Teruo Kitada, on behalf of Wells Fargo & Co.
DUTCH SENATE TAKES A MORE CAUTIOUS APPROACH
Proposal to give state-owned Holland Casino an exclusive three year run is rejectedDutch media reports indicate that a controversial proposal before the Dutch Senate to give an exclusive and protectionist three year online gambling license for the Netherlands to the state-owned Holland Casino.com has been rejected, suggesting a more cautious approach by Dutch legislators acutely aware of the scrutiny of the European Commission (see previous InfoPowa reports)
It is not yet known how this will impact the Internet operations of the casino, which has recently been in the throes of an extensive revamp, working with turnkey provider Cryptologic.
The Netherlands has been at the centre of many disputes in which gambling companies in other European Union nations sought to claim their right to the free movement of goods and services between the 27 nations in the trade bloc. State monopoly De Lotto has fought and locally won determined legal actions to exclude competition for its lucrative exclusivity and the country has been warned by the EU enforcement agency that its practices are not compliant with EU requirements.
Earlier this year a vote on the subject scheduled for the Senate was postponed by Minister of Justice Ernst Hirsch Ballin, who reasoned he was concerned that the measure would be rejected. And there have been reports that the government was also mulling the introduction of plans to prosecute Dutch banks and financial institutions that processed payments headed to online gambling sites.
The European Commission has been increasing the pressure on EU member nations with gaming monopolies to bring them into compliance with EU directives that guarantee fellow members free movement of goods and services in terms of Article 49 of the EU Treaty.
CRYPTO SAYS DUTCH VOTE WILL HAVE NO MATERIAL IMPACT (Update)
Holland Casino bid for three year online monopoly dislocatedThis week’s 35 – 37 vote Dutch Senate defeat of an attempt to grant the state-owned Holland Casino.com an exclusive three year license for the Netherlands will have no material affect on the casino’s new software provider, Cryptologic has advised.
The bill failed to pass the upper house of the Dutch parliament after being approved by the lower house in 2006. It would have given a Holland Casino revamped by Cryptologic exclusive online gambling rights in the Netherlands.
Major online gambling copmpanies based in other EU nations, such as PartyGaming, Bwin and Sportingbet could have suffered if the plans had been approved, the Reuters news agency reports. It is understood that the Dutch online gambling market could number as many as 400 000 players.
Europe is grappling with Internet betting, with 10 EU nations under the eye of the European Commission for monopolistic and protectionist online gambling policies.
In February 2008, the European Commission gave Greece and the Netherlands a final warning before court action over restrictions in their gaming markets in a push by Brussels to boost competition.
Dublin-based Cryptologic Limited said that while it had hoped to benefit from the establishment of the exclusive Holland Casino licence, the company has been fully compensated for its development work and has other revenue-generation initiatives underway in both Europe and Asia.
“While advocates of safe, secure and regulated e-gaming are disappointed with the Dutch decision, CryptoLogic never places all its bets on one table,” said Brian Hadfield, CryptoLogic’s President and CEO. “That’s why this decision will have no material impact on our business. We recognised the challenge in Holland early and prepared our business by accelerating other revenue-generating initiatives.”
CryptoLogic expects to benefit from various new initiatives this spring and summer. These include the release of non-download poker for all customers; the launch of the new World Poker Tour casino; a fresh release of casino games; and new software development for Betsafe, Sun Poker and World Poker Tour’s German- and Spanish-language products. The company also has a healthy pipeline of potential new licensees.
“CryptoLogic will continue to advocate regulation as the logical solution for all Internet gaming stakeholders – including players, investors and taxpayers,” Hadfield said.
AUSSIE STATE WILL WORK WITH BETFAIR
NSW approach in stark contrast to confrontational attitude taken by Western AustraliaContrasting attitudes toward the betting exchange concept pioneered by Betfair and expanding rapidly in Australia were showcased this week when the New South Wales government welcomed the opportunity to work with the company instead of litigating against it as was the case with Western Australia.
The WA government lost their case last week (see previous InfoPowa report) and now the authorities in New South Wales say that Australia’s High Court has approved its plan to tax and regulate the online betting exchange’s operations in the state.
NSW’s revelation follows closely on the heels of last week’s High Court ruling that a Western Australian law banning residents from wagering on betting exchanges is unconstitutional.
Racing NSW chief executive Peter V’landys told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the NSW plan “is exactly what the High Court requested. We have said and we continue to say that we will make sure that competition is even and that everyone pays the same fee.
“That is exactly what the court has found – you can’t discriminate against someone and you can’t be more favourable to someone.”
PARTYPOKER WORLD OPEN 4 SHAPING UP
Slew of top poker players aiming to travel to London later this monthThe PartyPoker.com World Open IV sheduled for London, England between 25th April and 2nd May 2008 will feature a top class field led by ‘Ambassador of Poker’ Mike Sexton, the company announced this week. Subsidiary PartyBets.com is offering odds on the event and has named the most recent Irish Open winner Neil Channing the 16/1 favourite.
“Mike Sexton is a fantastic addition to the World Open line-up but he features in a heat that also includes Barny Boatman, Marc Goodwin, Jan Peter Jachtmann and Juha Helppi so he will have his work cut out,” a company spokesman said.
Other familiar faces to look out for this year include recent PartyPoker.com European Open IV winner Nick Slade, Theo Jorgensen, Ian Frazer, Ross Boatman, Marty Smyth, Roberto Romanello, Jon Kalmar, Jon Magill, Thomas Bihl, Roy Brindley, Surinder Sunar, John Tabatabai, Pippa Flanders and Liam Flood.
Matchroom Sport has organised the event, which will be broadcast on Channel 5 in the UK later this year and distributed internationally.
The 72 runner $8 000 buy-in event features a first prize of $250 000 from a total prize pool of $576 000. Last year, 45-year-old former Sidcup betting shop owner Anthony Hardy triumphed over a final table that also featured Ian Cox, Ram Vaswani, David Rudling, Ian Frazer and eventual runner-up Ian Woodley. The winner in 2006 was Pippa Flanders while in 2005 Lee Nelson won the inaugural event.
The winner of each of the 12 heats will progress to the semi-final stage, and, for the first time in the event’s history all is not lost for the runners-up on the table as they will battle it out for the remaining two semi-final spots in “last chance” turbo heats.
WILL HILL GETS ITS MADRID LICENCE
Partnership with Codere works out wellBritish gambling group William Hill plc and its Spanish joint venture partyner Codere SA have been awarded a gaming licence by the autonomous Madrid regional authorities.
In a statement this week, Codere revealed that through the joint venture both parties will invest Euros 10 million each to open 70 betting venues in the region before the end of the year.
The Codere-William Hill joint venture will operate under the brand name Victoria, in Spain, it added. Last week the Valencia region confirmed it would be offering gaming licences, too.
ACQUISITION A DYNAMITE IDEA FOR BOSS MEDIA
UK games developer taken over by Swedish turnkey providerThe Swedish online gambling turnkey provider and software developed Boss Media has acquired UK games developer Dynamite Idea, which has supplied games to the likes of Ladbrokes and Unibet in the past. The acquisition extends Boss Media’s instant games portfolio based on Flash technology.
“Dynamite Idea is a leading game development studio with a proven and successful portfolio of instant games“, Eric Matsgård, Vice President Products, at Boss Media said. “We believe that our new own instant casino combined with Dynamite Idea’s fixed odds and slots portfolio, is a very compelling offering for operators.”
Dynamite Idea will offer its portfolio of games through Boss Media’s new Instant Gaming Platform and the recently launched Gaming Management System. The solution will enable players to access Dynamite Idea and Boss Media games with single sign-on as side games to, for instance, Boss Media Bingo and Poker and the newly launched Instant Casino.
“Dynamite Idea is extremely pleased to have concluded this transaction,” said Simon Caddy, Founder and CEO of the company.
“Separately the two companies have enjoyed great success and together we represent a hugely compelling package of gaming titles allied to a sophisticated platform. As soon as we began discussions with Boss it was clear that there was a meeting of minds, all the people we know at Boss share the same enthusiastic ambitions for the joint companies moving forward.”HDR Partners advised Boss in the transaction, details of which were not released.
BARCREST AND MILLION 2-1 ACCELERATE MOBILE GAMBLING PLANS
IGT funding escalates plans for new mobile slotsIGT UK and Million 2-1 have announced an extension of their partnership in the mobile gaming market under which IGT is providing Million-21 with funding to further develop the Million 2-1 business and specifically the partnership with Barcrest Group to bring mobile gaming content to the market. The funding is being provided through a convertible loan agreement.
This key development in the partnership between IGT UK and Million 2-1 precedes the widespread mobile launch of the ‘Hi 5’ game. Hi 5 will be the first in a series of games from Barcrest Group to be released for the mobile gaming market.
“This funding agreement strengthens the relationship between IGT UK and Million 2-1 and is consistent with our strategy of working with partners to find new markets for Barcrest Group game content,” said Robert White, IGT UK managing director.
Chris Sheffield, the CEO of Million 2-1) commented: “We are delighted to build on our relationship with IGT and the funding will escalate our plans for bringing exciting new mobile slot games to market.”
POKER IS MORE SKILL THAN LUCK SAYS ACADEMIC STUDY
Doctoral research provides empirical proof that skill is the main deciderThe skill vs. luck debate regarding the game of poker was revived again this week by a report in Science Daily detailing the results of studies at the Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland which apparently showed that skill is the deciding difference when it comes to winning.
Michael DeDonno, a doctoral student at the university carried out two poker-related studies with students which he claims provides empirical evidence that it is skill and not luck that dominates the game.
In the first study, DeDonno had 41 university students play eight games totalling 200 hands of turbo Texas Hold’em, a computerised simulation of ten-player hold’em poker. The majority of the students had little experience playing poker but half were given charts ranking two-card combinations from best to the worst and were told that professional poker players typically play only about 15 percent of the hands they are dealt.
The other half was given background on the history of poker but with no strategies and did not fare as well as the group who were given strategies. Before starting the study, 64 percent of the students personally opined that winning at poker was 50 percent luck.
‘If it had been pure luck in winning, then the strategies would not have made a difference for the two groups,’ claims DeDonno.
To statistically verify the results, DeDonno conducted a second study with students playing 720 hands. Again the group was divided and while all students improved their playing with practice, it was the section given strategies that continued to do better.
DeDonno found that students reduced the average number of hands they played from 27 at the beginning to 15 after they were given strategies, which improved their games and validated that ‘fewer hands result in improved performance’.
TEXASTEASER HITS THE JACKPOT
Canadian player collects a $200 000 bonanza on progressive slotThe bank balance of a Canadian online gambler is almost $200 000 healthier this week following a major slot jackpot score at the Slotland online casino.
“It’s hard to resist when the jackpot gets to big numbers like that,” said a company spokesman. “Lots of players play a little more when they feel like there’s going to be a big jackpot winner any second. They want it to be them! So we’d been very busy in the days before the win.”
Using the online nom de plume “TexasTeaser”, the lucky player, who has been a regular at the casino for the past 5 years, said: “I usually stick with video poker. I don’t know what made me think I should take a spin or two on the slots that day instead, but I’m sure glad I did!”
TexasTeaser won the biggest Slotland progressive jackpot yet recorded when he took home $195 083 after playing Treasure Box. The game has proved to be one of the most popular slots on the site, with “Jamcat2” winning a $113 418 progressive jackpot last year. Prior to this springtime windfall, the biggest jackpot ever won at Slotland was $179 166 won by “TopNotched” playing the Golden 8 slot machine last May.
Re-set at $50 000 after each win, Slotland.com’s progressive jackpot is already back up to over $70 000.
GLOBAL EXPANSION A PRIORITY SAYS NEW CRYPTOLOGIC CHIEF
$77.5 million war chest available for ambitious future plansThe recently appointed CEO for online gambling software provider Cryptologic provided some interesting insights on the company this week in an interview with the Irish newspaper The Tribune.ie.
CEO Brian Hadfield said that his company’s technology has carried wagers totalling more than $50 billion since its establishment in 1995, and that its west Dublin based servers carry more transactions a day than the Tokyo stock exchange.
Hadfield, appointed last month, sees his role as taking the originally Canadian-based firm – which has shown an annual profit throughout its 13-year history – to new levels, particularly in Europe and Asia. And he has a not insignificant $77.5 million war chest to make that aim a reality.
“Our plan is to continue to expand, and part of that is almost inevitably through acquisitions, ” says Hadfield, who has three acquisitions already “lined up” at the moment. With offices in Toronto, Minsk, Kiev and Singapore, the company is moving from temporary offices to a new HQ at St Stephen’s Green in Dublin.
Last year Cryptologic bought the website Casino.co.uk, an “advertising-and-education” online portal that acts as a conduit for delivering players to the 280 games available at Cryptologic’s licensees, and this is the model that will be followed in Asia. Language is the key element there, and Cryptologic prides itself on its multilingual products. Hadfield was himself a language teacher before entering the business milieu in a career which has seen him hold several senior management positions with major firms.
Deals in Ireland have not been ruled out either, he revealed, commenting that Paddy Power is “one of a few” bookies which has had discussions with Cryptologic since it relocated to Ireland.
Cryptologic announced its plans to move to Ireland before the US Congress passed its Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) in December 2006. The move to Ireland was decided on the basis of the large number of customers in Europe, and greater proximity to emerging markets in Asia.
“This is a good mid-point for our business between Toronto and Asia, ” said Hadfield.
The company did not receive any government grants to set up in the Republic of Ireland, and not even Ireland’s much-vaunted 12.5 percent corporate tax rate was the draw, as Cryptologic pays tax at only 5 percent through its Maltese brass plate.
“It’s a good place to do business here, and it’s a gaming-friendly environment, ” says Hadfield. This sentiment is echoed by company financial officer Stephen Taylor, and is clearly visible in the company’s accounts, filed last week, which showed surging fourth-quarter profits ahead of analysts’ expectations of $5 million based on a three month turnover of $20.4 million.
“Ireland doesn’t have a regulated online gaming regime in place at the moment, ” Hadfield commented, adding that Cryptologic’s Irish legal advisers expect the government to enact legislation similar to Britain’s industry-friendly 2005 Gambling Act.
“The government of Ireland is open minded enough to consider that type of framework. We believe that regulation and responsible gaming is important, and so we endorse jurisdictions that support that,” he said.
Hadfield says he has not yet had discussions with Department of Justice representatives on plans for regulating the gaming industry, but his plan is “to take that agenda as far as we can. . . We have to be able to stand up as a publicly traded company on three exchanges and talk about the fact that we believe proper regulation is the way to go”.
Proper regulation is, without doubt, not what springs to mind when Hadfield recalls the US ban on Internet gambling financial transactions which, in one fell swoop reduced the global market by 50 percent. The October 2006 law has contributed to an overall 29 percent fall in Cryptologic’s 2007 sales to $73.7 million, with annual profits falling 78 percent to $5.5 million.
“Two years ago we had a strategy of fewer large licensees and we were less aggressive. Now it’s a very different market . . . a very different world . . . as the focus is not on the US but more on Europe and Asia and therefore we have adopted a more aggressive outlook and strategy,” Hadfield revealed.
GOOD PROSPECTS IN FRANCE?
Media reports that a breakthrough may be possible for online gamblingCould the French monopolistic approach to gambling be on the verge of positive change? The French press seemed to think so this week in reporting that the Sarkozy administration plans to liberalise the French online gambling scene by implementing a more open and competitive regulatory regime.
France has already been in detailed talks with European Commission officials about its protectionist policies (see previous InfoPowa reports), and has been the recipient of warnings from that EU enforcement body. The change in presidency could be the catalyst for real change, bringing France into compliance with European Union requirements for the free passage of trade and services between EU member nations.
Although the European Commission has not commented on the media reports, Patrick Partouche, head of the Partouche casino group, welcomed the news, although he cautioned that the legislation could take some time to be enacted, as it was likely that the French monopoly Francaise des Jeux would attempt to delay the move for as long as possible.
DUTCH GET POKER CHANNEL
500 000 additional subscribers from the NetherlandsGood news for Dutch poker fans is that the Poker Channel has launched the sole dedicated poker channel in the Netherlands using the UPC digital platform and on KPN.
UPC expects to acquire some half a million additional subscribers through the partnership and the growing popularity of the Poker Channel, which has expanded into 12 major European markets in as many months (see previous InfoPowa report).
Most recent launches include Welho (Finland), Coditel (Belgium) in February this year; and Telefonica’s IPTV service, Imagenio, (Spain), and Melita Cable (Malta) in November 2007.
888.COM ASKED FOR FINANCIAL RECORDS
US police seek assistance in murder investigationThe US publication MetroWest Daily News reports that state prosecutors have requested the financial records of a player at the Gibraltar-based 888.com online gambling group. The officials are involved in a murder investigation in which an accused named as Neil Entwistle (28) is allegedly involved.
Entwhistle reportedly had an account with Casino On Net in the month before he is accused of killing his wife and infant daughter in the States two years ago.
Prosecutor Michael Fabbri has apparently sent a 7 page document to Gibraltar requesting the company’s financial records regarding Entwhistle. The prosecution is seeking the records to help prove that Entwistle’s financial problems were his motive for shooting his wife Rachel (27) and daughter, Lillian Rose, 9 months, on January 20, 2006 in their 6 Cubs Path, Hopkinton, home.
The prosecutor’s communication is a legal document sent from one country to another requesting testimony, documents or evidence in a court case.
In the letter, Prosecutor Fabbri claimed that Entwistle opened the gambling account on December 15, 2005, approximately one month before the murders. The prosecutor said Entwistle lost hundreds of dollars that month, which he claims is key evidence in building the motive for the murders.
“The prosecutor needs records relating to this account to help establish that Entwistle had financial difficulties and that these difficulties affected his state of mind and provided him with a motive to commit murder,” Fabbri wrote in the letter.
The letter also lays out, with no new details, the case the prosecution is making against Entwistle.
Entwistle is accused of killing his wife and daughter to hide a secret life of debt, online business scams and sex. Authorities say he stole a gun from his in-laws’ Carver home, then used it to shoot his wife and daughter in their bed.
He then drove to Carver, returned the gun and flew to England, returning to his Nottinghamshire home, where he was later arrested and extradited to Massachusetts, authorities allege.
Entwistle told authorities he discovered his wife and daughter’s bodies, considered killing himself, but could not go through with it. He said he went home to England to be with his family.
Entwistle is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and the illegal possession of a firearm. He is being held without bail in an American jail. If convicted, he faces a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
The trial is scheduled to begin June 2.
A UK HIGH STREET COMEBACK FOR STANLEYBET
Restraint on trade has been completedThe Liverpool Daily Post reported this week that Stanleybet International could be about to make a return to High Street betting shop trading, quoting a company official.
Formerly a division of Stanley Leisure, Stanleybet was sold to Giovanni Garrisi in a management buy-out in 2007. Garrisi agreed to a restraint on trade preventing him from operating in the UK for an agreed period, which has now expired.
Stanleybet operates some 1 500 sports betting shops across continental Europe.
The company’s financial director, Adrian Morris told the newspaper that with the completion of the restraint of trade clause it was possible that Stanleybet may revitalise its UK business.
EVEREST’S DREAM TEAM SELECTED
Online poker site will sponsor each player with a $100 000 packageUp-and-coming Everest Poker.com has selected ten top players for its “Live the Dream” sponsorship package following two days of interviews, hundreds of poker hands and hours of deliberation by an expert panel of poker celebrities at the Palais Auersperg in Vienna.
The final list of players will represent Everest Poker at all the major events in world poker for the next year, and will be financed with packages worth $100 000 each.
Selected from countries across Europe, the team members are:
– Fernando Festas (Portugal)
– Daan Slutter (Netherlands)
– Otto Richard (France)
– Voitto Rintala (Finland)
– Simone Coppari (Italy)
– Ghaoudi Machou (France)
– Stefanie Bergener (Germany)
– Steven van Zadelhoff (Netherlands)
– Romain Despres (France)
– Pablo Martinez (Spain)
– Wooka Kim (Japan)
Two hundred Everest Poker players travelled to Vienna hoping to become one of the chosen ten, and last Saturday night saw twenty finalists heading to the grand finale. The final twenty were given a surprise $3 500 package to play at the 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) where Everest Poker was recently signed as the official felt sponsor.
NON-COMPLIANT EU NATIONS COULD BE HEADED TO ECJ
EU’s compliance commissioner sounds a warning noteThe European Union’s no-nonsense compliance commissioner, Charlie McCreevy sounded a warning note at a European Policy Centre meeting in Brussels this week, asserting that it is “inevitable” that some of the cases his staff is currently working on in connection with EU member states and their gambling laws will go to the European Court of Justice.
“We have a lot of countries where we are at various stages of the legal procedures,” McCreevy said at a European Policy Centre event. European Commission spokesman have revealed that up to 10 EU member nations are currently being investigated for denying companies in other EU countries access to gamblers, whilst maintaining state monopolies on the pastime.
Among those that have received reasoned opinions and warnings from the Commission are France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, The Netherlands and Greece.
“We have a dialogue going on with some member states… but for those where we cannot reach agreement we will proceed to the European Court of justice,” McCreevy stated unequivocally.
“It’s inevitable that some cases will be heard before the ECJ,” he concluded.
NORWAY POKER CHAMPS MOVE TO THE UK
Uncertainties of the legal situation prompt a moveThe vagaries of Norwegian legal approaches to poker have resulted in this year’s Norwegian Poker Championships moving to Nottingham in England, where a clearer and more practical attitude toward the game exists.
The event will be hosted by the Dusk Til Dawn Club from April 28 to May 5, 2008.
Police raids and Norwegian authorities declaring poker to be ‘illegal’ under current Norwegian law have prompted the move, despite the respected international status of many Norwegian players who will now have to travel to compete in their own national event, now in its seventh year.
Up to 500 Norwegian poker players are likely to make the trip and test their skills, with aircraft charter arrangements in hand by the sponsors of this year’s event, Expekt.com.
Planning at present is aimed at presenting ten feature events, each with buy-ins around GBP100-500 and including no-limit and fixed-limit hold’em and pot-limit Omaha, with several rebuy and “second chance” events envisioned.
MORE GOOD NEWS FOR MACAU
Survey characterises Asian gambling island as “the richest place in Asia”Following news of improved employment prospects recently (see previous InfoPowa report) Macau investors were buoyed this week by bullish predictions for the island and new numbers from the government. These showed that surging gambling revenue and investments in luxury hotels and the entertainment industry has made the former Portuguese enclave Asia’s richest territory.
Macau has overtaken rivals such as Singapore, Brunei and Japan to take the top Asian spot after gross domestic product (GDP) per capita surged 27 percent to $36 357 last year, according to Macau government figures.
The results from the statistics and census service show that in US dollar terms, Macau, with a population of 538 000, is the world’s 20th richest economy, the South China Morning Post reported. This puts the territory, which like Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, ahead of Italy and just behind Germany and France.
The rise in per capita GDP was boosted by a 47 percent increase to $10.34 billion in gambling revenue last year. Investment bank Morgan Stanley has forecast gaming revenue will grow 23 percent this (2008) year and rise by about 20 percent per year in 2009 and 2010.
But while the improved growth figures may be good news for the territory’s wealthy, it comes with a down side. The average Macau resident saw median monthly employment earnings rise by only 7.5 percent last year to about $1 020.
By comparison, inflation climbed by an annualised 9.5 percent in February, a 12-year high. Rent and medical expenses are rising at a faster rate, by 15.6 percent for rent and 24.2 percent for basic medical consultations.
CANTOR’S HAND-HELD READY FOR VEGAS FIELD TESTING
Technology associate of Cantor Fitzergerald will work with Las Vegas Sands
Three years ago Cantor Gaming, a technology associate of the giant US financial services group Cantor Fitzgerald, pioneered lobbying efforts to introduce remote hand-held gambling devices for on-premises use in Vegas land casinos (see previous InfoPowa report).
Earlier this (March) month the company took this initiative to the next level when it submitted its product to the Nevada authorities for final approval before commencing field tests.
A successful result could position the company in a lucrative if increasingly competitive new technology niche market. Cantor has negotiated an arrangement with the land casino group Las Vegas Sands, owner of the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, to introduce its handheld gaming product in the public areas of casinos in the United States, Singapore and Macau.
The two companies are also working together to build Internet gaming sites branded for LVS properties. Cantor Gaming is already involved in white label deals for online casinos.
