The UK gambling consultancy Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBGC) was in the news over the weekend with its bullish predictions for online gambling despite the tough world economic environment.

Chief Executive Warwick Bartlett was widely quoted on his prediction that the world’s gambling market is set to grow from $345 billion in 2007 to US$433 billion by 2012, with Internet activity benefitting from players’ inclination to stay home and save on transport costs to land casinos.

In the GBGC report “Change is on the Cards” Bartlett says: “The slowdown in the USA will hit the pockets of Americans and Las Vegas will feel the effect of that along with high energy costs and a transportation system reliant on road and air. The US has not invested sufficiently in high speed rail, and destination resorts going forward will suffer as the cost of carbon-based fuels continues to be an issue of cost and supply,” he said.

Bartlett is critical of British authorities, accusing them of missing out on an opportunity to pull in offshore operators and urging a rethink on Internet gambling taxation: “The bookmakers in October 2001 did a deal with the then Chancellor Gordon Brown to repatriate their internet gambling sites back to the UK in exchange for betting to be taxed on bookmakers’ gross profits,” says Bartlett.

“For five years it has worked well but now the bookmakers are losing market share to offshore operators and the government needs to re-think its strategy. The offshore bookmakers are now investing the tax saving in marketing and scooping up the business. The current ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ is not sustainable in my view. The UK is missing the opportunity to create jobs, wealth, and taxation in a sustainable industry.”

The complex European legal situation is addressed in the report, with the forecast that market expansion across Europe is taking place as governments come to terms with rulings from the European Courts of Justice that there should be equity and no interference with the free passage of goods and services between EU member nations.

Bartlett’s company is also bullish about the future of two mega land casinos in Singapore and the prospect that the second largest gambling nation, Japan, could have a legal land casino within 5 years.

Referring to the current situation as the perfect storm for the Internet gambling sector, GBGC points to the tough global economic conditions allied to high energy and fuel costs, cheap broadband Internet connection and a smoking ban in all licensed land premises in most countries of the world.

“People are leaving their cars in the garage, playing online bingo or watching a match on TV and placing a bet from the comfort of an armchair,” said Bartlett.

“The land based businesses are going to find it hard to compete with the value on the Internet and with as much as 30 percent of gambling revenue now leaving the UK and going offshore the government should take note.”

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A dispute over American law enforcement against European Union online gambling companies looks set to be fought out at the World Trade Organization soon, a spokesman for Europe’s Remote Gambling Association said Wednesday.

Lode Van Den Hende told reporters in Washington there is a strong likelihood of the matter being sent to the WTO after EU officials wrap up their investigation into US enforcement of anti-gambling measures. He made the remarks while the [news/theheadlines/2008/9/17/europe-examines-us-gambling-policy.php|EU delegation met with representatives of the US Justice Department] and other government agencies on Tuesday.

Many publicly traded European companies, like PartyGaming and 888, withdrew from the United States after Congress passed the controversial 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which effectively banned Internet gambling by outlawing the transfer of funds from a financial institution to Internet gambling sites.

The European Commission began its investigation in March to find out whether the US had been particularly targeting European companies. EU online gambling companies claim they have lost billions of euros since the passing of the UIGEA.

Rep. Robert Wexler (D-FL), who chairs the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Europe, said the Europeans’ concerns must not be ignored. “I am increasingly concerned that if these disputes are not able to be resolved, it will likely mean costly retaliatory measures will be taken against US economic interests,” he said before meeting with the EU team.

An EU trade official, who asked reporters not to be named, said the EU team would make its recommendations public in November.

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While some continue to panic about the development of artificial intelligence and its affect on the online poker world, at least one international expert has declared the dominance of bots is imaginary in nature and cannot be disguised from recognition.

Dr. Darse Billings replied to a recent article concerning the rising level of play by robots versus humans, asserting that the use of bots online is easily detected, and would result in the forfeiture of the account and the banning of the player.

Dr. Billings is head of the University of Alberta Computer Poker Research Group. Billings has been involved in experimenting with the use of artificial intelligence to play poker since 1992.

Billings also states that even the most modern programs are not dominant, except under special conditions. For instance, the much-ballyhooed program designed by Ian Fellows at the University of California at San Diego excels only at Hold ‘Em when playing limit, heads up. The introduction of more players or the removal of limits causes the program to lose far more frequently.

The jist is that, in spite of much paranoia and consternation over the coming rise of the machines, poker bots are not really a threat in the near future to disrupt the integrity of online poker.

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On the Republican Party platform site there was a spot for members to leave messages to the party who wanted to comment on issues. Much to the party’s surprise, a majority of the comments came from online poker players.

“I don’t think the Republican party leaders realized how many of their members are online poker players,” said one irate Republican from Florida. “With the language in their platform about banning online poker and gambling they were losing thousands of voters that otherwise would vote Republican without a second thought.”

Another online poker player had this to say: “Taking away online poker may seem like something insignificant to Republicans, but when you take away someone’s hobby that is very significant. I work all week, I don’t go to bars, I don’t do drugs, I hardly have any social life; but on Friday and Saturday night I enjoy playing poker online with the new friends I have made. Although I believe in the majority of Republican party principals, if you take away my only hobby I will not vote for you.”

Greg Raymer, a professional player who won the 2004 World Series of Poker commented as well: “Why has this party, that used to protect my rights, now become the party that wants to create a Nanny-state?”

Although the language was removed the Republican party is still held responsible for adding pork to a must pass Port Security Bill that forced legitimate publicly traded companies out of the US market.

“This is a very small move on their part, but they have quite a bit to make up for before poker players forgive them,” said Joe Granger from West Palm Beach.

source: onlinepokerwebsite.net

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Poker-oriented retail outlets have grown in sales volume with the advent of women players, and some companies specialize in products for the female player. PMS Pokerwear features shirts and more for the woman who loves poker, and Poker-Pig is an expanding business that offers the best in poker jewelry.

Brenda McLeod is the president and owner of Poker-Pig. She is an enthusiastic poker player, and decided to fashion a line of jewelry designed with poker themes for players like herself. Brenda works with noted artist Linda Steinhoff in crafting her pieces, and runs her shop from Jupiter, Florida, catering to the world via her online site. Much of the jewelry features carved pieces displaying the symbols for the four suits.

Brenda has been operating Poker-Pig for about a year and a half, and has done well enough to expand her line. Aside from the earrings, necklaces, and bracelets which are her mainstay, Brenda also deals in card guards, specialty sunglasses designed for inside wear, and will soon carry a line of t-shirts.

PMS Pokerwear uses the slogan, “Because a woman’s place is at the final table…in style!” The company is less than a year old, and was created by women wanting to fill a void of poker products specifically for women. Even the name was chosen to let shoppers know most merchandise is for women only. The company sells through its Internet site, as well as its home office in Coconut Creek, Florida.

PMS specializes in shirts, which carry any of an assortment of feminine poker messages. For instance, the phrase “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend” accompanies a picture of a royal flush in the diamond suit. PMS also has a series of shirts with their own brand of poker rules imprinted; rule #46 is “Ladies have always known how to bluff. We fake orgasms.”

PMS does have other accessories, including a line of caps and hats, and a few shirts that carry male slogans, under a “gifts for him” category. But everything on the site makes clear this is an operation by and for women who love poker.

Shelly Thompson, a shopper recently spotted at the Poker-Pig and PMS display tables at the High Heels Tournament in Pompano, said, “It’s great to see poker products designed for women. Just because women love to play poker doesn’t mean they forget how to shop!”

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Gioia came from a professional background as a consultant in charge of auditing software installations for nationwide companies. He decided the way to assure players the game and system were legitimate was to deal actual cards.

Gioia and his brother created a machine, which they call the “Real Deal”, to continuously shuffle and deal cards at very high speed. The results can be transmitted to computers running hundreds of simultaneous games. This should give true results, unlike the random number generators currently used, Gioia believes.

All hands dealt are recorded and available for future auditing.Gioia will open the site realdealpoker.com to give free demonstrations of his product.

After the AbsolutePoker and UltimateBet cheating scandals, players are more suspicious than ever of online poker rooms. One poll showed over two-thirds of online players do not trust the deal, and many players aviod Internet play for reasons of trust.

Gioia doesn’t accuse sites of cheating, but he notes they can’t prove they don’t, and his method can. He hopes that the demo website will bring him the financing necessary to get his own online poker room running, and then the natural draw of an auditable site will bring customers flocking.

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In Holland, the Senate has passed a proposal that would permit the Government to tax online games of chance, including those provided by foreign operators, at a rate of 40.85 percent.

The legislation also reportedly contains provisions targeting individuals that win on non-Dutch online gaming sites, players that authorities have up till now prosecuted in defence of the State monopoly.

Table casino games are legal in Holland and are taxed under a separate provision of current law. The proposal, which is being supported by a cross-section of political factions, calls for the laws on Internet gambling to be changed in order that ‘illegal online gaming is not given advantage over gaming in the real world’.

Dutch politicians appear to widely favour the bill, mainly because it helps to ensure that: ‘illegal online gaming is not given advantage over gaming in the real world’, a reference to the Holland Casino in which the state is principal shareholder.

Earlier this year, the Senate rejected an amendment to the Dutch Betting and Gaming Act that would have granted Holland Casino an exclusive license to provide online gambling on a trial basis in The Netherlands. The State is the main shareholder in Holland Casino and experts at the time stated that Dutch politicians were nervous that the European Commission could intervene over the European Union principles of free movement of trade and services.

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He pointed to statistics showing the advantage Singapore and Malaysia have over the Philippines in foreign investments. In 2007 the Philippines brought in around $2 billion in foreign investment, compared to Singapore and Malaysia with between $8-10 billion each, he said.

Favila added that Singapore and Malaysia’s success was a result of their decisions to engage in “new project activity, which is now more popularly referred to as entertainment and private gaming”.

The Arroyo government is currently working on the $15 billion Bagong Nayong Pilipino-Manila Bay Integrated City gambling project, the reincarnation of the now-failed $20 billion Pagcor Entertainment City.

Gambling in the Philippines is a controversial issue, given the large Catholic population in the south Asian archipelago.

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz has been one of the main voices from the clergy speaking out against the project.

“The Philippine Government is the official gambling lord — a living reality that makes all upright and decent Filipinos wallow in disgust and shame”, Cruz wrote in his blog.

“To promote gambling for charity and humanitarian purposes, to build a $15-billion gambling city for the progress and development of the country…are but signs of desperation to deodorize and sanitize the downright vice of gambling — with the present administration as its over-all [boss].”

Favila acknowledged the Church’s concerns, but said it was important not to miss out on the opportunity the project has presented.

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The surprise choice of Sarah Palin as the Republican vice-presidential candidate doesn’t indicate either a pro- or anti-gambling shift in the party. As with her Democratic VP opponent, Joe Biden, Palin has never made any clear statement either for or against the legalization of gambling, but hasn’t opposed pro-gambling initiatives in the state she governs - Alaska.

Conservative voice
More socially conservative than Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Palin is not the sort of candidate one would expect to be particularly pro-gambling. A born-again evangelical Christian and mother of five, McCain’s running mate has made a name for herself since her election as Alaska governor in 2006 as a staunch conservative on issues such as abortion, gun control and crime.

Her selection was no doubt designed to attract the vote of the Republican rank-and-file, who could potentially have been alienated by McCain - a man who has developed a reputation as someone who opposes party traditionalists on key issues. The selection of a female could also attract swing voters put off by the non-selection of Hillary Clinton for either the Democratic presidential or vice-presidential nominations.

Lenience on gambling
Sarah Palin has not made any clear statement on gambling while Alaska governor, and in fact all the evidence points to some leniency on the matter.

She has opted to stay out of the ongoing debate on gambling expansion in the USA’s second-youngest state, allowing legislation passed by the Alaska State Legislature to become enshrined in law without signing or vetoing them. (On that matter, Alaska voters last Tuesday rejected a ballot that would have created a Gaming Commission, meaning only state legislators can now implement gambling expansion).

Therefore, the evidence overall points to a Republican VP candidate who, while far from pro-gambling, will not do the gambling industry any more harm than has already been done by current federal legislators.

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Further details are now available on our earlier story concerning a move by Dutch legislators to start taxing foreign and ‘illegal’ online gambling sites, and it appears that taxation will not imply approval or legal recognition.

Specifically, the Dutch Staatssecretaris for fiscal affairs driving the proposal, Jan Cornelis de Jager, argues that tax laws do not differentiate between legal and illegal tax subjects, and that both should therefore be treated with equity by the fiscus.

De Jager (39), a member of the Christian Democratic party who was appointed to the Dutch Cabinet in February last year, was an IT entrepreneur before entering politics and knows his way around the new Internet economy. In 1992, while still at university, he founded IT company Spectra Vision. All business activities were handed over to ISM eCompany (Innovative Solutions in Media) in 1997, where de Jager was CEO until his appointment to the Cabinet.

The mechanics of implementing the suggested and rather draconian 40.85 percent tax are still to be finalised, but it will be based on revenues generated and will include winnings by online gamblers. How this is to be achieved is not yet clear.

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