Online-Casinos.com - London-listed online gambling group Party Gaming plc could achieve a settlement of its U.S. position with Department of Justice officials before the year is out, Chief Executive Officer Mitch Garber told business reporters this week. Garber, who leaves Party Gaming on 1st May 2009, said his departure would not impact such a settlement.
The company, which exited the United States market following the enactment of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in late 2006, has been in negotiations with the U.S. authorities for some months, apparently seeking a settlement on its pre-UIGEA activities which would obviate any risk of retrospective prosecution. Such a settlement would considerably strengthen the company by removing uncertainties flowing from the American legal situation. According to AFX News, Forbes and other media reportage, Garber told reporters that discussions on the issue were progressing in a constructive manner, generating confidence that a resolution could be reached this (2008) year. (more)
Online Casino Reports - Denmark's municipal court has ruled recently that online poker tournaments are legal. This as well as several other elements, have contributed to the decision to loosen Denmark's ban on online gambling. Denmark's Minister for Taxation, Kristian Jensen, said in a radio interview that the country is looking into reform of the online casino industry. The new policy would require foreign bookmakers to "live up to the strict regulations we Denmark have for those who want to offer legal gambling in Denmark," the Minister said. European Court of Justice Poland, which has recently announced its change in policy towards online gambling, France, Holland and Germany, which have also shown signs to different extant in this direction, have all been under fire recently for their monopolistic practices. A European Court of Justice decision regarding the Italian protectionist policy, which ruled against the use of criminal law to ban online casinos located elsewhere in Europe, reported here in March 2007, has led to the pragmatist approach by Denmark. (more)
Gambling911 - A federal judge recommended the US drop tax evasion and obstruction charges against Gary Kaplan, the imprisoned founder of bankrupt British on line gambling company BetonSports Plc. Kaplan, 49, would still face charges of conspiracy and violating US Internet gambling laws. According to eGaming Review Magazine: Court documents from the US District Court of Missouri relating to the case brought by the US government against Betonsports founder Gary Kaplan on tax evasion charges, reveal that Kaplan is arguing that he did not violate tax laws because no wagering excise tax was owed by him because the wagers either were not accepted in the Unites States or were not placed by a person who was in the United States. The document adds: Questions of venue in criminal cases are not merely matters of former legal procedure. They raise deep issues of public policy. The response from the prosecution adds that while the US government argues that the defendant was subject to the wagering excise tax pursuant to defendants status as owner and operator of various specified gambling entities doing business in the United States, the court found the defendants arguments persuasive. (more)
UPI - U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., says he is growing impatient with the slow progress in coming up with regulations on Internet gambling in the United States. Kyl, who has been pushing for a ban on Internet gambling, says slow progress on the part of the government and the Federal Reserve is part of the problem, along with a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would block enforcement of any regulations. "The people who are violating the law need to know that they're not going to be able to get away with it and I think that the failure to get these regulations promulgated on time has perhaps given some hope and it's given life even to an idea over in the House of Representatives to put a moratorium on the regulations," Kyl told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Kyl warned that the ease of online access will only exasperate the troubles caused by compulsive gambling. The newspaper said that federal officials have said the slow progress in crafting a ban is due in part to the lack of a definition of illegal Internet gambling. There are also doubts that Internet gambling could be fully curbed.
