GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 11 - January 2010

computers fromaccessingnearly200on- linegaming sites. “The statute we’re citing is civil,” AGED Director JohnWillems told Casino City. “We’re not seeking to criminalize [online gambling]. We’re not seeking to prevent Internet gambling sites from doing their business where it’s lawful – we’re just seeking to prevent them from doing it in Minnesota where it’s unlawful. I’m only concernedabout the stateofMinnesota.” Willems also said that only sites where the actual betting took place would be blocked and that sites that simply adver- tise their serviceswouldnot beaffected. When asked why AGED was seeking to block online gambling sites fromMinne- sotans,Willems acknowledged that there was no great public push for this move and said this was a natural evolution of Minnesota’sbelief that Internet gambling is illegal. “Internet gambling is unlaw- ful inMinnesota,”hesaid. “So how do you deal with activity within the confines of our ju- risdiction while understand- ing there’s a global aspect to this?” ButMinnesota’s actionswere opposed vociferously by the Interactive Media Entertain- ment & Gaming Association (iMEGA) and the Poker Players Alliance (PPA). Lawsuits were filed, voters were mobilized and eventually Minnesota dropped its efforts to get Internet Service Providers to block online gambling sites fromMinnesota residents. AGED’s deci- sion to drop the enforcement action was part of a settlement agreement it reached with iMEGA. In return, iMEGA dropped its civil suit againstAGED. “We’re very happy with the outcome,” said Joe Brennan Jr., iMEGA chairman. “Itwas clear thepublic opposed this, and the swift negotiated settlement by DPS and AGED demonstrates both the merit of our suit and the shaky legal ground that theoriginal ‘black list’werebased.” The PPA, whichmobilized its more than 15,000 members in Minnesota – and more than 1millionnationwide –helped bring political pressure to the equation. “Minnesotapoker playersmadeour voic- es heard, the state listened and ended its ill-advised and improper attempt to cir- cumvent the rights of Minnesota poker players,” said MatthewWerden, Minne- sota State Director of the Poker Players Alliance. “I think it’s been a weird couple of months,” said PPA Executive Director John Pappas about theMinnesota situa- tion and the seizing of player funds from payment processors by the Department of Justice. “It was kind of amateur hour up there [inMinnesota] and they eventu- ally conceded to thatpoint and finallyan- nounced theywere going to stop enforce- ment of it. “And it sends a strong signal to the state that state-by-state action is the wrong approach and will be defeated on legal grounds and political grounds. My un- derstanding from the politicians is they didn’t realize how many people played poker. Ihadanopportunity to speakwith [Minn. Gov.] Tim Pawlenty and he said ‘this was a boneheaded, politically tone deafmove’ by thepeople inhis agency.” In September, bwin lost its bwin Liga court case. The European Court of Jus- tice, following an opinion written by a French advocate general, ruled Portugal had the right to restrict gambling offer- ings to a sole operator if it did so in the interest of preventing fraudand crime. OnNovember30, theonlinegambling in- dustry received an early Christmas pres- ent when the Obama Administration an- nounced it would delay implementation of the UIGEA. “We see this move by the Obama Administration as a decision to halt implementationofUIGEA inorder to giveCongress time toenact analternative approachof regulating Internet gambling instead of prohibiting it,” said Michael Waxman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure InternetGambling Initiative. “This decision is the latest evidence that momentum is building for a shift in pol- icy and a rewrite of U.S. Internet gam- bling laws to provide for regulation and taxation instead of prohibition. Over the next six months, Congress should act to create a framework that regulates Inter- net gambling to protect consumers and collect billions in much-needed revenue for critical federal and state government programs.” The request to delay the implementation of UIGEA regulations came from the fi- nancial services industry and several members of Congress, including Rep. BarneyFrank. And in December, Harrah’s Interactive Entertainment “soft launched” its long- awaited online casino – and it has a familiar face attached to it.Thenewcasino isnamed Caesars Casino Online and bears the unique black and goldCaesarsbranding. Caesars Casino Online is powered by Dragonfish and appears to offer a variety of games, including roulette, craps,CaribbeanPoker,three- cardpoker, videopoker, video slots andblackjack. CaesarsCasinoOnline is offering a 100% welcomebonus of up to£500. As of now, it isnotacceptingplayers from theU.S.or Germany. Players from theUnitedStates are redirected toapage that listsCaesars’ land-basedgamingproperties. On November 30, the online gambling industry received an early Christmas present when the Obama Administration announced it would delay implementation of theUIGEA. 21 Online Gaming Stories of the Decade