GOODLATTE/LEACH LEGISLATION TO BAN ONLINE GAMBLING & POKER EASI

The US House of Representatives passed legislation, 317 to 93, to stop online gambling including Internet poker rooms. Represenatives’ Goodlatte and Leach merged similar anti-online gambling bills that will make it illegal to fund player accounts with credit cards, bank transfers or any other standard accepted practices. The legislation now heads to the Senate for a vote. If the legislation becomes law then the online poker industry will suffer a direct hit when the millions of US online poker players and their money are removed from the market. But passage will create a whole new set of problems; namely, how will the US enforce this law? No matter, the law will have a dire effect on the Internet gaming industry.

Online gambling sites’ stock took a tumble when the negative news was announced. The online gambling sites’ stocks have already taken a hit based on last week’s rumors out of Washingto that the legislation would likely pass. The vote today was overwhelming to stop online gambling in the US. Industry insiders are speculating that this is the beginning of the end for poker’s recent surge in popularity. Of course, online poker will remain legal almost everywhere else in the world. Europe gives their citizens the freedom to define the forced moral issues of online gaming while the United States dictates the politian’s definition of evil. Something ironic about getting moral advice from a professional politician.

The Poker Prof was expressing his concerns back in 2004 when he posted this article on the legalities of online poker.