US Poker, Casino and Sportsbooks in the US

I’m not going to reword the thousands of articles that have been written, some extremely incorrectly on the legality of online gambling, including our poker and growing poker websites in the US. The fact is it stands to change in the next couple years anyways. Instead let’s look at how gaming laws are going to affect us in the future.

Online Sportsbooks in the USA

Lets first get this out of the way because it provides us with the most information about the future. We are talking about online sportsbooks because they’ve been through it all. They are the ONE major form of online gambling that is clearly illegal as stated by the 1961 Wire Act. Guess what? It’s almost easier to deposit at an online sportsbook than a poker site or casino.

Things are done different with online betting lines. Their depositing isn’t the same and they use different ewallets to get transactions through. They can get a credit card to go through with just about no problem, and have been doing so for well over a decade just because of some dumb law made before the internet even existed.

Online Poker Sites Legality

Ok, so let’s assume the UIGEA does go through. Is/was December 1, 2009 the doomsday of online poker? Heck no. It’s just a fork in the road. Some will go different ways as we saw with the beginning of the UIGEA. According to an interview Cardplayer.com did with an Americas Bankers Association member, e-checks will most likely be denunzio. US gambling sites are proficient at un-coding credit cards so you may even see an increased processing ratio with these.

One ewallet that hasn’t been given much thought, that I think will explode will be something called PicClub. It was introduced to me a couple years ago,by a now Poker Players Alliance member, and previous lawyer for PicClub. It is apparently UIGEA-proof and passes any laws for depositing.

Will Online Casinos Hold Strong?

With credit card processing being used American accepted casinos will always hold strong. They are not in as bad of a boat as sportsbooks but they will still have a bit more trouble with wires and such.

Into the Future

As we grow into the 3 years after the UIGEA was signed it is my strong speculation that online gambling will not only grow but some day be legalized. Optimists and lawyers have said they think it could happen within a year, but listen folks. I’ve been following this for over 3 years, day in and out and my personal opinion is that actual laws won’t be in working force in any less than 5-10 years. It not only has to pass, but it has to go through all the bull that makes a bill finally law, which is ridiculously time consuming.

Article by Roger Shriver: Compatible Poker