Online Casino Edition – Casino News News about online casinos and gambling

On Tuesday, the American Gaming Association (AGA) made its strongest call yet to Congress in an attempt to make online gambling legal. They stated that legalization was vital in order to protect US citizens from gambling operators that function illegally.

Frank Fahrenkopf Jr., President of the AGA, said in a statement that “There are no longer any good reasons to put US citizens at risk by continuing to outlaw online poker in the USA.”

Code of Conduct

Officials from the association created a Code of Conduct for online poker. In it they gave an overview of what measures would be necessary for a regulatory framework which would protect players in the USA as well as stop minors from gambling. It would also assist problem gamblers and help law enforcement for identifying and prosecuting any illegal operations.

The Code of Conduct addresses six principles:

• Extensive background checks should be done to keep criminals out.
• Proper identification should be enforced to prevent minors and cheaters from playing.
• Regular auditing and testing should be conducted to keep games fair.
• Exclusion process should be carried out to prevent minors and cheaters from accessing the sites.
• Responsible gaming protections should be implemented for patrons and problem gamblers.
• Anti-money-laundering procedures should be put in place.

Besides this the AGA has also released a YouTube video which explains how having unregulated poker line can be hazardous to Internet players.

Taking Action

Fahrenkopf explained in an interview that the association was neutral on two bills put forward by Congress which attempted to address the issue. The statement released on Tuesday shows that the association is in favor of legalization.

“We believe that this is the time to get this done. It’s all about educating members of Congress about not only Internet poker, but poker in gaming in general,” Fahrenkopf said.

On Monday Congressional Quarterly stated that Fahrenkopf had been seen on Capitol Hill using the argument that by legalizing online poker, additional tax revenue would be created along with between 10,000 and 15,000 sector jobs, both public and private. In addition to this, he has apparently proposed to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that he should add online poker legalization to President Barack Obama’s job-creation package.

Push for Regulation

Despite the crackdown at the beginning of this year, US citizens continue to play online poker on a daily basis. The US Justice Department charged a number of gambling operators back in April of bank fraud and money laundering. These sites included Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker, and PokerStars.

Fahrenkopf explained that by using their proposed Code of Conduct, US players will be able to gamble in a secure environment. He stated, “Online poker operators must adhere to the same stringent regulations that have proved effective in governing brick-and-mortar casinos.”

Using these guidelines, the AGA believes that online poker could be properly and effectively regulated, thereby protecting American players, creating employment, and increasing revenue into the country.

Recently, a major decision given by a French court has taken everyone by surprise. All these days, poker was considered to be a game of chance or luck but this new decision by the French court is bound to make everybody think twice before they play poker in future. The French court has declared in a case that poker is a game of skill and not a game of chance. It is being considered similar to other games of skill like craps and blackjack.

Impact of the ruling on earlier cases

Poker is one of the popular games played by many both in the regular land based casinos as well as online casinos. Many poker players still believe that poker requires a lot of skill and is not just a game of chance. The decision of the French Court has just reaffirmed the belief of the players. The court’s ruling is exactly the reverse of decisions given in earlier cases. Many years ago, in cases related to poker, it was always ruled that poker was a game of chance. This new decision is expected reverse the decision of all previous cases.

Impact of this decision on Online casinos

Laws concerning online gambling in France refer to poker as a game of chance. Online casino sites contain language that refers to poker as a game of chance. This decision of the French court is expected to have a great impact on the online gaming community. All these years, online sites have been offering poker under the category of games of chance.
Very shortly, the French Government is likely to appeal against the decision of the French Court. If the government succeeds, then, online casinos providers can easily open up gaming sites without any kind of license. Online poker sites can easily attract many players and they need not pay current taxes as well.

The French Government’s Future Plans

Proactively, the French government is also planning to amend its laws with a provision for making poker a game of skill. By including poker as a game of skill, it will allow the French Poker Pros to claim any amount that has been won as income which attracts tax. A lot of changes are expected to happen in the long run with this major decision by the French Court.

However, there are lot of people who are arguing against the decision. Many players involved in skill games like chess players, mathematics professors and also bridge players are against considering poker as a game of skill. They are now questioning the very concept of skill and its importance. Chess players who believe that skill is the main aspect of the game of chess are not ready to accept poker as a skill game. Very soon, the French government’s proposal is expected to end this argument.