Now it looks like the DOJ has passed down a critical opinion that clearly states that some forms of online gaming are in fact legal. For years there has been much confusion on the Wire Act as to what exactly is legal according the Feds when it came to the online gaming laws in the US. Well, looks like each of the States can now allow online gaming within their borders and this means that State Lotteries and other gaming companies can offer it and stay in the Feds good books. It’s the 1961 Federal Wire act that prohibits any type of cross border gaming, at that time, way back then relating to the telephone. So, now they are simply saying that it is only sports betting which falls under this law and other forms of online gaming essentially is totally legit. The press was released last Friday, just before the holidays but the opinion was actually passed down last September. Seems that all the previous political administrations had their own interpretation of what the Wire Act meant and so until now just included all forms of online gaming even within a particular State’s borders. But now the tables have turned and the current administration seems to be opening up the online gaming laws and leaving it up to the States to decide. Now the State Lotteries and have the right of way to offer more gaming options. Besides, everyone knows the States are looking for every possible way to increase revenue through collecting more much needed tax dollars. So the clarification on the Fed’s law clearly allows other forms of gaming including the popular forms like online poker and casino.
Now each US State gets to legislate and regulate.
As can be expected, the State of Nevada was the first and had just days before unanimously passed their own first ever regulations for online poker. Once again enabling companies to operate legally within the Nevada State borders. Washington D.C. is also just steps away from implementing a law to legalize and regulate online poker with the State borders. The questions is, how many more States are going to come out of the wood work quickly with their own gaming regulations once everyone starts laying their gaming laws on the table? Everyone knew this was coming, it’s now just a question of who is the fastest out of the gate and ready to have their own versions of State rules and regulations on gaming. And if States want to coordinate efforts with other neighboring states that also have online gaming regulations, the skies the limit. Another major group of winners besides the States are all the gaming technology companies the can provide the software, infrastructure and capabilities needed to operate a large gaming company. Then there will be the big gaming poker and casino software companies who will now be poised to come back into each of the States and offer their proven technologies which some American players may already know very well. The States will want to get up and running fast, so they will put their projects up for tender and might even team up with the big public companies out of the EU. After all, they have the technology and experience to manage the complete process. For example, the Canadian BC government just hired well-known Paddy Power to manage all their online sports betting activity. So leave it up to the State to decide how they want to do it, and let the games begin for both US consumers and worldwide gaming companies.
