UK Government Pushes to Regulate Online Gaming
Global forum to be established to discuss control.
Reuters reports today that the UK Government plans to hold global online gaming talks this year to seek support for its move to regulate and control the fast-growing online gambling industry.
The Government is also concerned about protecting children from gaining access to online gambling sites, and the criminal activities and money laundering which have somewhat inevitably followed the growth of online gambling.
The booming Internet gambling market, which has now fully infiltrated mainstream culture in Britain, saw three big stock market floats in 2005, generating multi-billion dollar revenues. Perhaps the best-known name in the UK market, PartyGaming came to the market in mid-2005 as the biggest float in London in five years.
Online Poker in particular surged in popularity in 2005 – with a number of dedicated magazines and newspapers launched to support the ‘leisure’ activity, with Dennis Publishing’s Poker Player being the prime example – see http://www.pokerplayermagazine.co.uk
Anthony Wright, a spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said earlier today, "We want to initiate a discussion about problem areas which include protection of children, advertising, money laundering and criminal infiltration.”
"We became the first industrialised nation to legalise online gaming ... The reason we introduced the act was to regulate the new forms of gambling. We can only get so far on our own," Wright told Reuters today.
The ministry has yet to send invitation letters for the meeting, but has received positive feedback from Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
The Gambling Act introduced late last year attempts to modernise the UK’s 40-year-old gambling laws via a new regulatory framework. However, it was seen as ‘too little too late’ by many concerned parties and welfare groups, warning of gambling addiction and escalating crime amidst the growing deregulation and liberalisation of the online gambling industry.
Online casinos and Poker rooms form a market valued at up to $12 billion (£6.8 billion) a year globally.
The Government is also concerned about protecting children from gaining access to online gambling sites, and the criminal activities and money laundering which have somewhat inevitably followed the growth of online gambling.
The booming Internet gambling market, which has now fully infiltrated mainstream culture in Britain, saw three big stock market floats in 2005, generating multi-billion dollar revenues. Perhaps the best-known name in the UK market, PartyGaming came to the market in mid-2005 as the biggest float in London in five years.
Online Poker in particular surged in popularity in 2005 – with a number of dedicated magazines and newspapers launched to support the ‘leisure’ activity, with Dennis Publishing’s Poker Player being the prime example – see http://www.pokerplayermagazine.co.uk
Anthony Wright, a spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said earlier today, "We want to initiate a discussion about problem areas which include protection of children, advertising, money laundering and criminal infiltration.”
"We became the first industrialised nation to legalise online gaming ... The reason we introduced the act was to regulate the new forms of gambling. We can only get so far on our own," Wright told Reuters today.
The ministry has yet to send invitation letters for the meeting, but has received positive feedback from Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
The Gambling Act introduced late last year attempts to modernise the UK’s 40-year-old gambling laws via a new regulatory framework. However, it was seen as ‘too little too late’ by many concerned parties and welfare groups, warning of gambling addiction and escalating crime amidst the growing deregulation and liberalisation of the online gambling industry.
Online casinos and Poker rooms form a market valued at up to $12 billion (£6.8 billion) a year globally.
Comments
DoctorDee 17 Jan 2006 09:40
1/5
WTF does this have to do with computer gaming?
Just because pathetic losers choose to throw their money away using a computer does not make them gamers, and does not make on-line gambling gaming.
Stick to the important stuff, please.
Just because pathetic losers choose to throw their money away using a computer does not make them gamers, and does not make on-line gambling gaming.
Stick to the important stuff, please.
king skins 17 Jan 2006 11:55
2/5
DoctorDee wrote:
WTF does this have to do with computer gaming?
Just because pathetic losers choose to throw their money away using a computer does not make them gamers, and does not make on-line gambling gaming.
Stick to the important stuff, please.
Just because pathetic losers choose to throw their money away using a computer does not make them gamers, and does not make on-line gambling gaming.
Stick to the important stuff, please.
I quite like playing poker, Texas Hold 'Em is a wikkid game. I've also played on a couple of online poker sites :) Although mostly for Play Money but I have played with real money, but very low stakes.
I turned a $100 into $17 in a week. Then turned the $17 in a $150 :) Now I'm down to $60 and trying to slowly build it back up.
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DoctorDee 17 Jan 2006 12:04
3/5
king skins wrote:
I turned a $100 into $17 in a week. Then turned the $17 in a $150 :) Now I'm down to $60 and trying to slowly build it back up.
The house always wins.
king skins 17 Jan 2006 12:12
4/5
DoctorDee wrote:
king skins wrote:
I turned a $100 into $17 in a week. Then turned the $17 in a $150 :) Now I'm down to $60 and trying to slowly build it back up.
The house always wins.
In casino games yeah they do. But Texas Hold 'Em is a player vs player game and not a player vs casino game. The casino takes a rake (or percentage of the final pot) but you win from or lose your money to other (real) people.
So it could be considered an Online Multiplayer game ;)
DoctorDee 17 Jan 2006 12:33
5/5
king skins wrote:
But Texas Hold 'Em is a player vs player game and not a player vs casino game.
Do you REALLY believe you're playing a real person, and not a computer program, which knows what the next card is going to be?
Either way, it doesn't matter, since the house is getting its rake no matter who wins. The house ALWAYS wins.