| Last updated: 6:17 AM Sunday April 27th 2008 | |  | US |
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| | An Early Love for Casino Gambling
Despite the overwhelming size of the United States, gambling in America has always been about getting together with friends for some light entertainment, such that from a relatively early stage in its history, gambling could be accredited with bringing people closer together. The earliest gambling forms were poker and horse-racing, since playing-cards and horses were easy to find and commonly used among settlers and Native Americans alike. Poker quickly became the dominating form of gambling in America, among other card games and sportsbetting, and as its popularity traveled up the Mississippi River to Northern states, the idea of introducing a casino culture gradually strengthened. Finally legalized in the 1940's, the industry boomed with casino centers all across the country, and eventually, Las Vegas. It was only a matter of time before Americans would jump at the opportunity to take their casino culture online.
An Uphill Battle for Online Casinos
The beginnings of online casino history in the US are shaky, and it has been an uphill battle ever since. August 18th 1995 saw the world's first ever "virtual casino", Internet Casinos, Inc, commence operation. It featured 18 casino games, online sportsbetting, and even access to the National Indian Lottery. From this point on, gambling in the US developed almost as quickly as the internet itself.Yet contrary to what many believed, the US courts and Department of Justice never viewed online casino gambling as legal. The 1961 Wire Act prohibited all forms of gambling over "wires", and the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 banned sports wagering of all kinds, such that it was considered illegal under the existing laws. The legal interpretation of these laws and resultant disagreement was what caused the US Government to attack online casino gambling directly, and for a 4 year period starting in 2002, a series of law-suits and legislations were undertaken in order to prohibit online gambling for good. Meanwhile, the American online gambling community of players flourished, and served as the customer basis for many of the industry's leading companies. Naturally, law-makers were met with their resistance, and had to find alternative ways to impose an outright ban - and in 2001 credit cards were banned for online gambling purposes. The Big Blow
Rather than attack off-shore operating online casinos (which dominated the US market), law-makers pursued the prohibition of all forms of online payment in order to ban online gambling entirely. It was Senator John Kyl who first proposed the bill for the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, and in the fall of 2006, the deed was done. The UIGEA is effective in that it has caused most online casinos and gambling websites to discontinue business with US citizens. Yet it has been just as ineffective, in that it does not resolve the dispute around the misinterpretation of the 1961 Wire Act, and other major issues such as whether or not Native American tribes retain the right to operate exclusive online gambling sites. The bill currently maintains the status-quo in America, yet disputes over its effectiveness continue to rage, and it is likely to be amended more than once in the coming years. Some of the major appeals to the issue include Rep. Barney Frank's Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act, and Rep. Shelley Berkley's Internet Gambling Study Act. Meanwhile, Americans have managed to find alternate ways in which to access and use online casinos, so the market still lives.
Perhaps the trickiest aspect of online casino legality in the US is the individual management of each state. Specific forms of online gambling have been legalized and banned in certain states according to their separate laws, making it hard to follow and even harder to tackle legally. Where the American Industry Stands Now
Gambling still constitutes a major part of American industry, and Americans still contribute a large part to the international online gambling industry, which currently generates billions each year. At the most, Americans are waiting for the complete legalization of online gambling across the States - yet this will be a lengthy process.
In the meantime, several new trends in online gambling have developed among citizens, including NFL betting, props betting and lotteries. NFL, being the country's official sport, is naturally a source of passion amongst citizens, as is Hollywood and the Celebrity Star System, which are obvious reasons behind this phenomenon. In addition, many American citizens are currently working in the international industry in major organizations and companies situated offshore - the dream, of course, is to continue their line of work at home in the States. |
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