Illegal internet gambling soars in the US
May 11th, 2006 | Published in Business, Online Poker | 3 Comments
According to this report on a survey done by the American Gaming Association, “just 19 per cent of US internet gamblers realise – or are willing to admit – that the activity is currently illegal”.
Interestingly, “more than half (55 per cent) believe online gaming companies find ways to cheat, and 46 per cent believe their fellow players cheat.”
It’s a fascinating report with enough pie charts and statistics to make your head spin.
May 12th, 2006 at 6:34 am (#)
Illegal according to who? There’s a very detailed article in either the current or a very recent edition of Card Player that affirms the widely held belief that the U.S.’s Wire Act does not apply to online gaming as it currently exists. When reporters (such as this chap at the Register) say such things without citing a source, it’s generally inadvisable to accept the statement verbatim.
May 12th, 2006 at 9:56 am (#)
Haley – I know it does sound rather dramatic, but the quote was taken directly from the original AGA report. It’s on page 2 in the executive summary. I’ve also just noticed that that particular quote is one of several that are flashing up on a section of the AGA website promoting the survey.
I do think the language in the report itself certainly should’ve been qualified because as you quite rightly point out, this is far from being black and white.
May 18th, 2006 at 10:29 pm (#)
I saw that, after the fact; it was a direct quote, but the context is suspect, since the AGA is the mouthpiece for brick-and-mortar gaming in the U.S. I was talking with Lou Krieger the other day and he mentioned that the AGA post seems to be one of those “something for everyone” releases — and this was the passage that The Register chose.
I’ll be doing a long story in the KAP blog next week — you’ll be getting another mention there.
Thanks again for your work,
Haley