The MSNBC website was busy Wednesday when the news and entertainment
broadcaster launched a poll to assess opinions on the weekend legislative
moves to disrupt financial flows from American players to online gambling
sites.
Under the heading "Should Online Gambling Be Illegal?" the
poll provides three voting options for visitors:
* Yes, Internet gambling fuels betting addictions.
* No, people should have the freedom to wager any way they choose.
* It doesn't matter what Congress passes, there will always be ways
to gamble online.
After only a few hours responses had almost reached the 3 000 mark,
promising a similarly strong response to a poll on the same subject
run by the Wall Street Journal earlier this year which attracted over
9 000 responses. As we went to press, the results - like the earlier
WSJ poll - were strongly in favor of legal online gambling at 93 percent.
Readers who would like to study the current state of the survey, and
perhaps register a vote can find the poll at http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15119408/
The poll was accompanied by an article on the latest political assault
on online gambling in the USA. This highlights the fact that the American
Gaming Association, which lobbies for the U.S. casino industry, took
a neutral stance on the bill, even though several prominent members,
such as MGM Mirage, have said they would like to start online sites.
AGA president and CEO Frank Fahrenkopf said the organization does
not believe the [Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.] eliminates
the possibility for U.S.-based casinos to open online sites, regulated
by states or the federal government, in the future.
"This bill did not make anything legal or illegal,"
Fahrenkopf is quoted as saying. "What it did was affect the mechanism
by which Internet gambling takes place…and there is some question
as to whether or not that will be effective."
The article goes on to report that Nevada Congressman Jon Porter introduced
a bill in May 2006 that would study whether online gambling sites,
run by U.S. companies, could be effectively regulated. Fahrenkopf
believes that bill is likely to be considered early next year. The
measure is backed by the casinos and still gathering support.
"It is still Congressman Porter's intention to move ahead
with this bill," says Trevor Kolego, the congressman's
legislative director. "We hope to pass it, if not by the
end of this session, then next session."
Unlike the full bill that passed the House but not the Senate earlier
this year, the compromise version of the Unlawful Internet Gambling
Enforcement Act that was attached to the Safe Ports bill and approved
late Friday night does not explicitly outlaw betting on online casino-style
games, such as poker and blackjack. The bill does bar financial institutions
from accepting "illegal" bets, leaving the question unanswered
as to whether some forms of online gambling are permitted. To date,
sports betting is one of the only forms of gambling explicitly outlawed
in the act.