Poker Players Alliance

Joe Brennan is the President and CEO of the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA), at the recent Next Generation in Gambling Conference in Montreal, Mr. Brennan took the time to speak with iGaming News about iMEGA’s missions and why they are opposed to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA)

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Last December, the Remote Gambling Association (RGA) filed a formal complaint with the European Commission alleging discrimination by the United States in its internet gambling practices. The complaint centers around European internet gambling companies being shut out of the U.S. market while the United States “allows domestic online gaming operators, primarily horse betting, to flourish.” Poker News Daily has learned that the European Commission is scheduled to visit Washington, D.C. this month.

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On October 13, 2006, President Bush signed into law the SAFE Port Act. Buried within this legislation dealing with port security issues was a section entitled the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). The UIGEA, which had literally been added at the eleventh hour, has been the source of a great deal of confusion and debate regarding its applicability to internet gambling. The UIGEA did not actually outlaw internet gambling. Rather, it prohibited the transfer of funds from United States financial institutions to internet gambling sites that were not defined in the Act as “legal’ sites (i.e. sites devoted to fantasy sports, online lotteries, and horse/harness racing). The effect of this act has been to move most internet gambling sites off shore and to create confusion for financial institutions whose clients seek to use such sites.

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This fall the House Financial Services Committee is finally expected to release its regulations for the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which was signed into law in 2006; banks are anxiously awaiting clarity on a number of fronts, particularly what will entail illegal gambling and what happens if they mistakenly block legal transactions.

The issues are so thorny that House Financial Services panel Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) and Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced legislation designed to delay the implementation of said regulations, but the committee rejected the bill during the summer.

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In the United States,residents of 48 states can gamble legally, and no major city in the continental U.S. is located more than a short drive from a gambling venue. Yet a number of laws continue to restrict Americans’ ability to gamble on the Internet. The three main laws are:

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A delegation of European Union trade officials will conduct talks with US officials at the end of this month over prosecutions and market restrictions concerning online gambling that appear to European interests to be restrictive and discriminatory in nature.

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It’s been a roller coaster ride for the online poker industry over the last month. In June, HR 5767, which would have suspended the regulations of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, was defeated in Committee by virtue of a verbal vote. Last week, Democrats in Congress struck back. Jim McDermott, from Washington State, introduced legislation that would earmark up to $40 billion over the next ten years to underserved populations for job training and educational assistance.

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European Union officials will interview members of the Bush administration next month in advance of a potential trade challenge to the U.S. ban on Internet gambling, the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which made it illegal for financial institutions to handle transactions between US residents and online poker and gaming operators.

The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) complains that the UIEGA, a 2006 U.S. law placing new restrictions on Internet gambling, has cost its members hundreds of millions of dollars in lost stock value.

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