Issue N12, 2007
March 29, 2007
Another Online Poker Site Suspends Play for Real Money
The latest online gambling poker site to suspend real play is Planet Poker – one of the oldest and most established poker rooms on the internet. For nine years, Planet Poker has provided players with great gaming fun within a secure environment. Unfortunately, the site has finally had to buckle to the pressure placed on online casinos since the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act last year, and has announced that from March 31, players will no longer be allowed to play cash games.
There are two options available to online players who hold accounts with Planet Poker. They can either withdraw their money or they can transfer their accounts to another online poker room that has entered into an agreement with the company. In fact, the Planet Poker website suggests that players visit Bodog Poker for their poker entertainment from now on. A press release put out by the company stated that it would reconsider entering the United States’ gambling market if legislation was passed that overturned the UIGEA. However, for now, Planet Poker’s clients can only enjoy play-money action.
Germany Warned Against its Online Gambling Ban
The European Union Commission has warned Germany that if it does not overturn its internet gambling ban, it could face legal action by the organization. Germany’s ban on online gambling was passed earlier this year and has angered many members of the European Union, including Austria and the United Kingdom – two countries at the forefront of the EU challenge to the law. The main issue surrounds the fact that Germany runs a state horse racing monopoly and will not include advertising bans on this sport in the new law.
The European Union Commission has given Germany a month to change a draft treaty of the anti online gambling legislation. “We asked Germany to reconsider the total ban on lottery and sports betting on the Internet,” said an EU spokesman this week. He went on to add that there were other ways to control the online gambling situation, such as guarantees on identification and mandatory registration, without a complete ban being put on the industry. The German ban essentially calls for an end to all online lotteries, casino gaming and sports betting, but allows horse racing within the country’s borders.
Online Funds Transfer Company Blocks Canadian and Turkish Gamblers
Neteller, until recently the gambling world’s most popular online funds transfer service, announced in a press release this week that it would be cutting off its Turkish and Canadian gambling markets, effective immediately. The move comes after authorities in both countries continue to crack down on what they term illegal gambling activity. While the Turkish government has declared online gambling to be strictly forbidden by law, the Canadian government seems to be influenced by the goings on across the border since the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act last year.
Unlike American customers, however, Canadian customers will still be allowed to use their Neteller accounts for non-gambling transactions. This is also applicable to Turkish account holders. This is the second company connected to online gambling that has left the Canadian market in the past two months. In February, VIP.com, a popular internet gambling company, announced that it was not accepting any new accounts opened by Canadian gamblers. The bulk of Neteller’s income originated from the United States and the company experienced a huge drop in customer traffic after it was forced to halt its operations there. 30% of Neteller’s non-U.S. customers are Canadian-based.
Cyprus Prompted to Consider Stricter Control on its Internet Gambling Industry
Following a study by a popular credit card company, JCC, the Cypriot government is considering taking a second look at its legislation regarding internet gambling. JCC recently reported that gamblers on this island state spent at least 28-billion GBP last year on online gambling activities, although politicians are concerned that this amount is as much as 1.5-billion GBP if recycled amounts during betting are taken into account.
As a result of the study, the Cyprus government House Institutions Committee convened last week to revise the figures and see what could be done about stricter control on its internet gambling industry. The main issue at stake is taxation. The politicians feel that if more control were exercised over the industry, the betting companies would be forced to pay taxes, which in turn would benefit the country’s economy enormously. Problems arise, however, when we consider the fact that Cyprus is a member of the European Union which strives to maintain open trade borders between affiliate states. If Cyprus began stricter control over a particular industry, this could be conceived as going against the very principals of the European Union and the country could find itself facing the same problems as Germany is at present.