US Not Game For Online Betting

The $12 billion online betting business is in jeopardy, thanks to the proposed US bill that is bound to terminate wagering on the internet. Casinos and sports leagues have now started to lobby against the enforcement of the bill, which puts them in direct conflict with antigambling coalitions. The proposed bill makes it illegal to use a banking instrument like a check or credit card to settle Internet wagers, and it would penalize institutions that act as intermediaries channeling money between the offshore gambling enterprises and American bettors. The measure would also update the Wire Act of 1961 to prohibit Internet gambling specifically. Proponents of internet gambling argue that wagering online is legal in more than 80 countries, in some form or the other and the bill goes against the growing tide of international wagering. Britain, for instance, is about to devise a tax-and-regulatory structure that it hopes will entice offshore gambling companies to locate there. Anti-bill lobbyists also insist that gambling is just an extension of entertainment and that they are game for regulations to protect consumers. Nevertheless, the bill will be voted on this summer as part of what the Republicans call their American Values Agenda.