Steve Cook, European Managing Director from poker software developers Tribeca Tables, gives his expert views on what we can expect in 2006 for poker vendors and operators.
[ 1 2 3 4] - Continued from Part III.
In the offline world, we should see more live poker tournaments taking place during 2006 with ever greater prize money. A new growth area could see more physical card clubs in the UK based on membership subscription. We are unlikely to see the majority of land based casino operators opening up poker rooms everywhere. The reason is that floor space is at a premium. A bank of slot machines earns a hundred times more in revenue than a poker room. Perhaps we may see Las Vegas style poker rooms with the introduction of the super casinos.
However is there a sting in the tail? Currently Poker is going through a craze period. Will it last? No doubt other trends will enter into the gambling arena. Poker remains popular and expansion into other formats will help continue its popularity. Of course trends and lifestyles will change. Also in the UK, the new Gambling Commission is charged with regulating the gambling industry. The British Government are due to introduce a “White List” for remote jurisdictions outside the UK that offer gambling products to the UK. Operators will need to watch this space carefully if their servers are in jurisdictions that do not make it to the white list. As yet, there are no countries on the white list, although we are given to understand that Alderney, the Isle of Man and some others have actively lobbied the British Government for inclusion at the appropriate time. It is to be expected that any country which does achieve a white list status will have a standard of regulation comparable with remote gambling regulations. These will be established under the new Gambling Act, thereby minimizing the possibility of advertising their operations licensed in such jurisdictions. At present the British Government has not made a full statement but it is likely that it will take whatever steps it can to ensure that tax revenues are not lost to the UK from off-shore licensees which are allowed to advertise here. Full details for the new criteria and when we expect the white list to take effect are due sometime this year.
A close eye should also be kept on the USA, where further attempts will be made to reintroduce the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, this time by US Rep. Bob Goodlatte through the House, expected in the early part of this year. The online gambling market in the US has now become a $12 billion industry. It is claimed that the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act is vital to protect minors and communities from the problems of addiction, crime, bankruptcy and family difficulties that come from gambling. Whether repercussions through out the rest of the gambling world will have an impact if the bill ever transpires remains to be seen.
The British Government announced at the end of last year a crack down and said that it will not turn a blind eye to operators and publishers who are knowingly breaking existing laws regarding advertising gambling products and will be issuing new guidelines as a result. With that in mind the next few months are going to be interesting for poker operators as well as consumers. There could also be even tighter controls levied with Internet gambling. Why? Well, despite new regulations coming into force, could we see Internet gambling spiralling out of control; plunging the nation into massive consumer debt and gambling addiction? To a certain extent, it will depend on public opinion and the media’s attitude. Some tabloid newspapers would have you believe the new Gambling Act will lead to a serious increase in gambling addiction. Of course the British Government are very responsive to these kinds of headlines, particularly as gambling throughout the UK will continue to grow with the advent of super casinos on the horizon! Issues over addiction need to be observed as well as the prevention of minors gambling. Support in these areas by the industry is absolutely necessary. Responsible gambling is key and the industry acknowledges that 100%. But by and large, the freedom for members of the public to do what they feel with their leisure time should be upheld. Adults will always want to gamble; whether on the National Lottery, at the races, in casinos, or in online poker rooms. Online poker is here to stay, so let’s have all online gaming properly regulated and legislated. #
Steve Cook is the Managing Director of Tribeca Tables Europe, Limited, registered in the Channel Island of Alderney. They are the world's first and largest independent network of ePoker brands and committed to providing innovative and reliable software solutions to clients exclusively in the arena of ePoker.