December 1st was supposed to be the day when all online gambling services and financial institutions were to comply with the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. The Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve announced that this compliance will be delayed 6 months, until June 1, 2010.
"This decision is the latest evidence that momentum is building for a shift in policy and a rewrite of U.S. Internet gambling laws to provide for regulation and taxation instead of prohibition," said Michael Waxman, spokesman of the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. "Over the next six months, Congress should act to create a framework that regulates Internet gambling to protect consumers and collect billions in much-needed revenue for critical federal and state government programs."
The UIGEA's rules are intended to "limit the use of payment systems" for online gambling. However, the problem is how ambiguous the rules are. They do not differentiate enough between illegal online gambling and legal online gambling, such as the purchase of lottery tickets, or in some states, betting on horse races or dog races.
Under this compliance, banks are required to prevent any illegal online gambling businesses from opening bank accounts and screen all commercial customers. A House Financial Services Committee hearing is scheduled for December 3rd to discuss Internet Gambling Legislation and the opportunities to effectively regulate the industry.
To celebrate the delay, many online gaming sites are offering sign up bonuses and no deposit or free play gaming options.
e8e66196-225d-403a-b302-089873215940|1|5.0
Tags:
internet gambling,
online gambling,
regulation delayed,
compliance delay,
online gaming
Categories:
Online Gambling