In order to know where you are going, you need to know where you are. Therefore, we will first have a quick run through of the state of the online gambling market in the U.S. today.
In late 2006, gamblers from the United States were dealt a sudden blow - losing almost all of their online gambling opportunities. On October 13 of that year, President George W. Bush signed a bill that had worked its way through Congress, and seemed to put the United States security interests at the forefront: The SAFE Port Act. Yet another bill designed to increase the security of the United States borders by offering Security and Accountability For Every (SAFE) port in the nation. However, for anyone who is familiar with bills, and how they get passed, there is often a great deal of special interest money that is offered to what might seem like a potential law with wonderful intent. In terms of the SAFE Port Act, it had to do with the very simple Title VII of the act, subtitled the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA).
The UIGEA and the Immediate Effect on the Online Gambling Industry
For Americans who enjoyed activity at any number of online casinos, the UIGEA would, in effect, cease all transactions from American-based financial institutions to Internet gambling sites. Though within the legislation there was small opportunity for exemption, the overwhelming response was that of compliance from financial institutions as well as the publicly owned online casinos. Though many private entities have continued to allow U.S. players with more creative options in the deposit of funds for play, on a grand scale their influence has not even amounted to a pebble in a pond.
Disputes Associated with the UIGEA
The nation of Antigua and the United States had been in a drawn out dispute through the World Trade Organization over U.S. restrictions of Internet gambling. In January of 2007, the WTO ruled that the United States was in direct violation of the treaty which allowed for U.S. citizens to enjoy full access to all Internet gambling companies and online casinos based in the island nation.
Antigua filed a claim of 3.4 billion against the U.S., yet the U.S. immediately went into settle mode, offering concessions in other sectors - to this day, no list of those concessions has been released to the public. The Bush administration cited an issue of "national security" under protection of the Freedom of Information Act.
The Future
As was evident in the passage of the bill, and the subsequent disputes with Antigua and the European Union, the past administration was willing to squash the American players' ability to enjoy action at online casinos, and at a trade cost that has never been divulged to the public. The present and immediate future looks bleak for American players hoping to gamble through any online casino entity. Congressional focus presently lies elsewhere. However, for poker players, the silver lining has come in the form of the Poker Players Alliance.
Fighting the Good Fight
Serving as a unified voice for both amateur and professional poker players, the PPA has been evangelistic in getting the good out about the many games of poker. Educating many who are unaware that poker isn't simply a game of chance, rather a game of finite strategy. They have made headway in their fight, taking the message straight to local, state and federal lawmakers. More information and the opportunity to join the Poker Players Alliance for free can be found at their site. (theppa.org)
Hope For Change in Obama?
With the election of President Obama, many Americans hoped for a move away from the Neo-Conservative values of government legislated morality and government-created obstacles to international commerce. Obama is on record as being a poker player himself, and the Poker Players Alliance, has made convincing Obama that the UIGEA is wrong a top priority.
And it looks like Obama is listening. According to the White House Citizen's Briefing Book, released in May, the people think online poker should be the number one technology issue and the number 11 overall issue for consideration. This is based on a website set up by the White House, called Change.gov, which asked people to submit policy proposals which citizens could then vote for. The "Boost America's Economy with Legal online Poker" proposal was the top vote getter among technology issues and the 11th overall vote getter, with 46,890 points.
Casino Games Benefiting From Poker
The proposal asks President Obama to amend the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act to exclude poker, based on the principle that poker is not a gambling game entirely subject to luck, such as blackjack or craps, but one that requires a significant amount of skill for success. Skill games are typically not considered subject to criminalization in the United States, while games of luck are more likely to be outlawed.
Even if the lobbyists of PPA are focusing on the liberation of poker, other casino games may very well benefit from the proposal as well. Casino games such as blackjack involves a lot of skill, and to argue that they are only based on luck just don't hold up for long. Making the distinction between luck and skill based games is really difficult, and the easiest thing would be to just abolish the UIGEA as a whole, instead of just re-writing and modifying it over and over again.
Clearly the President has many issues to address given the state of the global economy and the United States' standing in the world. However, Obama has indicated that he has a favorable view towards the issue of loosening restrictions on online gambling, and maybe, by the time Obama's administration is over, online gamblers will be free to enjoy not just poker, but all casino games of their choice.
