The prominent British bookmaker William Hill called a halt to its
online gaming business in the United States this week, pending clarification
of the scope and enforceability of state and federal gaming laws in
that country.
Company spokesmen said it had taken steps to stop accepting online
casino and poker business from clients with a U.S. address or U.S.-issued
credit card, following similar steps already taken earlier to prevent
Internet betting on sports events by U.S. residents.
Shares across the sector have taken a series of knocks since July
as some U.S. politicians seek to ban Internet gambling and as U.S.
and European authorities target executives from BetonSports, Sportingbet
and Austria's Bwin.com.
Chief executive David Harding said: “The advice we have
had is that online gambling is not illegal under the Wire Act, but
there are clearly attempts within the US to make it illegal. Given
the debate in the Senate about changes to internet gambling, we just
decided this was the most prudent course of action.
“We are small in the US and have never marketed ourselves in
the states. It is just an outlet for US customers if they come across
us on the internet.”