One-Year Study of Internet Gambling Proposed

The Las Vegas Gaming Wire reports the following:

The board of directors for the casino industry's top lobbying group agreed unanimously this week to call for a one-year study of Internet gambling by a federal commission.

The action Wednesday by the American Gaming Association in Las Vegas is likely to hinder efforts in Congress to ban Internet gambling.

Association President Frank Fahrenkopf said his organization remains neutral on legislation to prohibit online wagering.

But without the support of casinos, measures by Reps. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.; Jim Leach, R-Iowa; and Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.; to outlaw Internet gambling face an uphill struggle.

Fahrenkopf estimated there will be between $12 billion and $15 billion bet on the Internet this year, and 60 percent will come from U.S. citizens.

So what’s this really all about? A study proposal is always a way for Congress to back away from legislation they believe is doomed to fail without looking sheepish, or seeming as though they are abandoning their supporters when it seems the wind isn’t blowing in their direction.

But for the casinos, perhaps future legislation that would allow for regulated online wagering offers a way for brick and mortar casinos to extend their presence into cyberspace. After all, they would have a significant marketing advantage if they were allowed to offer online gaming. After all, they would represent regulated, USA-based, publically held companies, with long track records of success in a highly regulated environment.

Politics always makes for strange bedfellows, and stranger things have happened. Maybe in a few years we’ll have online poker rooms and cyber casinos going public on the New York Stock Exchange, building capital, creating jobs, offering investment opportunities, and providing gaming for those of us in the USA in a regulated environment — just like they do in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. And isn’t that what we all want, anyway?

College Poker Championship Heating Up

There's only two weeks left to qualify for the 2005-06 College Poker Championship, a no-cost, freeroll tournament open to any enrolled college student anywhere in the world, who is at least 18 years of age.

The top five percent of the finishers in the Regional Qualifier events move on to the Regional Finals, and the top ten percent of the finishers from that event move onto the Finals.

Regional Qualifiers are slated for April 30 and May 7, and if you have not yet registered, there's still time to do so. Just go to www.collegepoker.com, download the software, and you're all set.

If you place well in the qualifier, you 'll be eligible for the Regional Final on May 14, and if you finish in the top ten percent there, you'll move on to the finals on May 21.

Last year's winner, Chad Flood, of the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, won $41,000 in support of his educational endeavors, a contribution in his name to the charity of his choice, and the title of World's Best College Poker Player - 2005.

Entry into the tournament is entirely free, and no purchase is EVER required. So there's no excuse not to enter! This year's winner might be you.

Poker Scammer ZeeJustin Tells His Story on holdemradio tomorrow night

Justin Bonomo, aka ZeeJustin, the young poker pro who had $100,000 taken from his account by Party Poker when it was determined that he played multiple accounts in tournaments, will appear with Amy Calistri and me on Holdemradio.com, tomorrow night, April 27 at 9:00 PM EDT.

Poker Stars also concluded that Justin was using multiple accounts, but rather then confiscate his entire bankroll, they seized $3,450 he won that way. There's a big difference between Party's approach and that of Poker Stars, and we'll talk about it tomorrow night.

Although Justin readily admits to having played multiple accounts, he wants to tell his own story in his own words in order to set the record straight and begin reclaiming his reputation.Tune in to "Keep Flopping Aces" at holdemradio.com.

Broadcast times are 9:00 PM EDT, 8:00 PM Central, 7:00 PM Mountain, and 6:00 PM Pacific.

The following week, May 4, we've confirmed Matt Lessinger, the author of "The Book of Bluffs" for the show. Since its printing earlier this year, Matt's book has become a must-read for just about everyone. We're looking forward to having Matt on the show, and Matt's eager to chat about the book and to answer listener questions.

Will Congress Act Wisely?

In a recent plea agreement, Tony Rudy, a former aide to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX) was charged with lobbying members of Congress to oppose Internet gambling bills similar to those in Congress now, while receiving gifts from disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff in return for his efforts. This backlash against Jack Abramoff has led some in Congress to cosponsor this legislation as a way of distancing themselves from their previous opposition to similar bills.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte’s (R-VA) bill still provides for online gambling and online lottery sales within states that have laws permitting such activities. This, of course, has positioned Christian conservatives against it, since they view the Goodlatte bill as flawed because it allows for horseracing and fantasy sports, while prohibiting other forms of gaming.

Another bill, sponsored by Rep. Jim Leach, (R-IA), seeks to crack down on offshore operations through measures designed to cut off the flow of money from U.S. gamblers.

Joseph Kelly, a business law professor at Buffalo State College who studies gambling issues, said that offshore gaming operators will use foreign financial institutions in order to skirt restrictions the Leach bill seeks to impose on banks and credit card companies.

Revenue from online gambling around the world has grown from $3 billion in 2001 to $12 billion last year, according to Christiansen Capital Advisors, a marketing research firm that I’ve quoted before. Half that total came from Americans in 2005.

It’s clear that the genie is already out of the bottle. To enact legislation designed to prevent what’s already transpired is both foolish and foolhardy. If Congress feels a need to get involved in offshore gaming as a means to protect American customers — I’m still not sure what, specifically, their legislation would protect us from — they ought to follow the UK’s model: Recognize online gaming, regulate it, and tax it.

That would provide whatever measure of protection our elected officials deem necessary. But more importantly, it would encourage online gaming providers to locate in the United States, to take their firms public in this country, and prevent the massive flight of capital and jobs from our shores.

That's the wise position. But only time will tell whether Congress will take it.

Can Paris Hilton Win Back Her $200,000 Bentley?

Two days ago I reported that Paris Hilton, who claims to have been bitten big-time by the poker bug and also reportedly stated that she always wins the game in Vegas, lost her $200,000 Bentley in a poker game held at a Vegas casino owned by her parents.

But now Party Poker has offered Hilton a chance to win a new Bentley in an online no-limit Texas Hold'em game against World Poker Tour color commentator and noted poker player Mike Sexton.

Reports I’ve seen about this proposed heads-up poker match neglected to mention what might be in store for Sexton if he’s victorious, so we, the curious, are left to wonder and speculate.

Actually, the more I think about it, this entire story about Hilton losing her $200,000 Bentley seems like nothing more than a publicity stunt. After all, every time I’ve played poker in a casino, chips were on the table, not car keys. The last time I saw anyone wager the deed to the ranch was in the movies, a long time ago.

Paris Hilton Loses $200K Bentley in Poker Game

On April 16 I reported that Paris Hilton has caught the poker bug, and that -- according to her -- she always wins.

A recent report surfaced ,stating that Paris lost her $200,000 Bentley in a poker game at a casino owned by her parents. So much for always.

That didn't take long, did it? Less than a week for Paris' "I always win" statement to come completely apart. Oh well, I suppose "I always win" was mere hyperbole on her part, and mere stupidity on the part of anyone who chose to believe it.

Paris, baby, listen to me. No one wins all the time. Not you, not me, and not anyone else you can name. Welcome to the real world of poker. It's fun, glamorous, star-studded, exciting, and filled with variance.

Don't let it get you down!

HoldemRadio Webcast Radio Show a Big Success

Last night co-host Amy "Oil Doe" Calistri and I did our first webcast radio show for www.HoldemRadio.com. It was more fun than I ever thought it would be, and the broadcast hour just flew by. Amy and I prepared waaaaaay too much material for the show, so much of what we wanted to talk about will have to be pushed back to next week.

I never thought it would happen, but I was more neverous than I anticipated. I've been on radio and TV before, but always as a guest -- usually for some short segment about poker -- but never as a host. It's a lot different on that side of the microphone, and what makes it different is the responsibility for carrying the show for an entire hour, avoiding dead air time, and maintaining a rapport with Amy and the show's producer, Wade Andrews, even though we are broadcasting from two different locations. She's in-studio with Wade in Austin, TX; I'm at home in Palm Desert, CA, connected via Skype to their board.

We were lucky. Our first guest was poker author, player, and founder of two Canadian magazines, Dave Scharf. Dave's regular gig is as a morning drivetime radio host in Saskatoon, so he's as comfortable as can be on the air and our interview lots of fun. It also helped that we had a number of good questions from our listeners, which gave us even more material to talk about.

You can listen every Thursday evening at 9:00 PM EDT (6:00 PM PDT) by going to www.holdemradio.com and clicking your way to the show. It's also archived on the site, so you can listen to us at your convenience.

I'm hoping you'll tune in every Thursday night. See you on the air.

College Poker Championship: Still Time to Sign Up and Play -- and It's All At No Cost

If you're a college student -- four-year college, junior college, grad school; it doesn't matter -- you still have some time to enter this year's College Poker Championship, a not-for-profit, absolutely free tournament aimed at finding the world's best college no-limit Texas hold'em player.

Last year's winner, Chad Flood of the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, outlasted a field of some 30,000 (yes, that's right: a field five times larger than the main event at the World Series of Poker) to win more than $40,000 in scholarship money for himself and $10,000 to a charity of his choice.

To qualify, all you have to do is go to www.collegepoker.com, download the software and play in one of the preliminary events held every Sunday. The top five percent of the finishers in each weekly event move onto the Regional Finals, which will be played online on May 14. The top ten percent of the finishers in that event go on to the Finals, which are slated for May 21.

There's never a cost to enter, so you have everthing to win and nothing to lose. Give it a go. I guarantee you'll enjoy it.

OK Congress; I'm Willing to Make a Deal

In the wake of the US failure to meet the deadline set by the World Trade Organization’s Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) in relation to Antigua & Barbuda’s gaming case, gaming companies and officials in Antigua have been monitoring the progress of US legislation that would render financial transactions with US-based clients illegal.

While there have been statements issued by Antigua’s Minister of Finance and the Economy Dr. Errol Cort and Ambassador to the World Trade Organization Dr. John Ashe, few signs of distress have been noticed in Antigua’s gaming industry.

This is not surprising, according to former Antigua Director of Gaming Ron Maginley. “While the WTO issue is important, Antiguan gaming companies are more concerned with the possibility of US legislation that would make credit card transactions between offshore gaming companies and US residents illegal.

“What would be a problem,” according to Maginley, “is where they make it a federal offence because then you would have US financial institutions aiding and abetting individuals in committing a crime. In such an instance, I think we would see many US financial institutions that would just start to impose measures that truly seek to deny the companies access to US financial services. This is where the danger really comes from.”

Maginley referenced bills for prohibition legislation that have gone before Congress this year. These bills, according to Antiguan ambassador Dr. John Ashe, are “about as directly contrary to the recommendations and rulings of the DSB as could possibly be imagined. “Not only do these bills do nothing to provide Antiguan operators with any access whatsoever to the vast American gambling market, but in fact each would further entrench the anti-GATS nature of United States gambling law….”

This concern was echoed by Antiguan Finance Minister Dr. Errol Cort, who noted that the laws “would, in fact, further entrench the discriminatory nature of the United States’ approach to cross-border gambling and betting services.”

The beat goes on. When you think of the number of Americans who play poker, including many presidents, members of congress, and Supreme Court Justices, any attempt to prohibit this activity is nothing more than a nanny-state mentality on the part of certain legislators who think they know best when it comes to how we choose to spend our discretionary income, or even worse, think poker is inherently evil and that their actions would somehow protect us from ourselves.

To all the members of congress who support this legislation, I say, “Give it a rest. There’s nothing inherently evil about poker. And in any event, if you agree to drop this insane legislation, I’ll absolve you of any responsibility for protecting me, and I’ll gladly sign a waver holding myself fully accountable for the consequences of any decisions I make and any risks I might choose to take at the poker table and in the free market capitalistic economy at large.”

Was Gavin Griffin Scammed out of $6,500 by a Guy Posing as a Gal?

I’m gonna send you out of here in three short paragraphs and over to http://kickasspoker.blogspot.com, to read one of the best tabloid poker stories of the year.

If the tale is true, Gavin Griffin, who was the youngest-ever winner of a WSOP bracelet when he won the $3,000 Pot Limit Hold'em event at the 2004 WSOP, was scammed out of $6,500 by a 19 year old male poker player with a female online persona, a hot picture or two to match, and a seasoned con man’s ability to tell a glib yet convincing story to a mark eager to believe all that he was hearing.

It’s all based on a post that first appeared on NeverWinPoker, a poker-discussion forum with a reputation for unrestricted content. But this story is not just about the $6,500. It involves some allegedly steamy online activities between Griffin and the scammer, culminating in Griffin sending a picture of his more private parts to his “cybergal.”

If you like to dish the dirt, this tale is about as dishy and dirty as it gets, so go on over to Kickass Poker and read Haley Hintze’s tabloidesque piece for yourself.

Credit Card Rates to Rise for UK's Online Poker Players

Many UK banks now plan to charge cardholders higher interest rates for online gaming.

Both the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which has 11 million credit card customers, and Egg, with more than 3 million cardholders, will now charge a higher interest rate and, in some cases, a fee to customers who gamble on the Internet.

An RBS spokesperson, said: “Gambling transactions are to be treated as ‘advances,’ as this is felt to be a more accurate means of reflecting that a gambling transaction is effectively a cash equivalent exchange.”

A spokesman for Egg, part of Prudential, said: “Our decision to levy a fee on such transactions is simply bringing gambling into line with traditional forms of cash advances, such as obtaining money from an ATM machine. . .”

Why Banning Online Poker is Bad for You, Me, and Everyone Else

In a recent editorial, Card Player Magazine Chairman Barry Shulman had some strong comments regarding the Congressman Bob Goodlatte's (R-VA) bill:

Shulman said, It wants banks knowing where you transfer funds, which enables and requires them to know intimately your exact buying habits. To comply, the government is requiring financial institutions, credit card companies, and Internet service providers to bear the cost of being the watchdogs and tracking the suspects.

I couldn't agree more. For years the Federal Government has passed mandates down to state and local government, usually without the funding required to carry them out. These unfunded mandates have been the bane of governors, mayors, county officials, and city councils across the land.

Now Rep. Goodlatte has taken that one step further. His bill would mandate investigative and enforcement activities for the private sector. It would do this by requiring banks, other financial institutions, credit card companies, and internet service providers to do the government's work for them by watching, tracking, and reporting on their own customers' buying habits, and these firms would be required to do it at their own expense.

Regardless of your stance on Internet gaming, this legislation is so flawed at its core that it will be unenforceable, costly to business, drive a wedge between financial service institutions and their customers, and it won't stop consumers from playing poker online. All it will accomplish is to ensure capital flight and public offerings on the London Exchange -- and that's money and jobs that could have, and should have, stayed at home if only we had a sensible policy of regulating online gaming rather than proposed legislation that seeks to banish it.

If that's not bad enough, the hypocracy in Rep. Goodlatte's bill is stunning. His legislation carves out exemptions for horse race wagering and a few other things, as if those forms of internet wagering were OK but playing poker online is somehow different.

Bad law that's predicated on bad public policy and a complete misread of the public will smacks of egocentric elected officials who proposes to know what's best for you, what's best for me, and what's best for anyone else who has a few discretionary dollars in his or her jeans and wants to play a little poker for fun and relaxation.

We don't need this legislation, and we don't need more governmental intrusion into our lives, and we don't want to see the Feds start a policy of deputizing and mandating private companies to do their dirty work for them.

Mr. Goodlatte, the rumbling sound you hear is that of your fellow Virginian Thomas Jefferson. He's turning over in his grave at your intrusive and overbearing view of government's responsibility and your complete disregard for our rights.

PokerStars to go public; RIP Puggy Pearson; Poker's Growth Continues; Paris Hilton's Latest Obsession

PokerStars to go Public in the UK:

According to Matthew Goodman, writing in UK’s Sunday Times, “PokerStars, the world’s second-largest internet poker company, is preparing to float on the London stock market before the end of this year with a value likely to exceed $2 billion (£1.1 billion).”

While I wish PokerStars all the best in their public offering, I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if online gaming were legal in the Untied States, just as it is in the UK. Under those circumstances, I’m sure that Stars and Party Poker before it would have chosen to go public in the USA. The markets are bigger, most of the customer base is American, and there’s no reason to headquarter businesses on the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands except for the fact that American law makes it impossible for online gaming firms to go public in the USA.

When you look at it this way, it’s easy to see how American public policy is sending capital, jobs, and investors overseas when that money and those jobs could have been retained at home.

The United States’ policy on online gaming makes no sense whatsoever, but we live in an economic universe and to some degree it’s unconstrained by national borders. If our elected leaders make it difficult to launch or maintain a business here, that business will simply relocate to another nation ¾ one where it is valued and wanted ¾ while we miss out on all the growth, economic diversification, investment, and jobs that go along with it.

The number of online poker players in the USA is staggering. When the public desire for a product or service is overwhelming, a policy of prohibition is doomed to fail, and the lessons of history are clear: Our national social experiment that attempted to outlaw liquor only drove it underground, gave rise to massive criminal organizations to meet the public’s demand for alcohol, and instituted a culture of corruption in state and local government.


RIP Puggy Pearson

Poker legend Walter Clyde "Puggy" Pearson died last week at age 77. Pearson, the man credited with creating no-limit freeze out poker, the format in which all the players start with the same amount of chips and play until one player wins all the chips in the game. That’s the format Benny Binion turned into the World Series of Poker in 1970,

Pearson, however, was a lightning rod in the poker community. He could be charming, witty, boorish, abusive to dealers and other players, and, according to some, a cheat.

I played against Puggy about ten times, and all of those were fixed-limit games, not the no-limit games he preferred. I never saw him even the slightest hint of cheating, but I did see all of the personal characteristics I listed above come to the fore. Nevertheless, I liked him at the table. His stories were terrific, and listening to them was like seeing a movie about poker’s bygone days. My condolences to his family and friends.


Poker's Popularity Continues to Rise

Poker Pages Industry Index reports that poker’s popularity continues to rise, with a 30 percent growth in the first quarter 2006 over a similar period last year.The PPII for the first quarter of 2006 stands at 130 ¾ a growth of 30 percent over the same period last year.

While poker on television may have reached the saturation point, the game itself is still growing, and that’s the really meaningful news.


Paris Hilton is Obsessed With Poker

Actress Paris Hilton has revealed that she is "obsessed" with poker after recently learning to play the card game, and has started playing in poker tournaments in Las Vegas.

"I'm obsessed with poker. It's my favorite game now. We love it. We play at tournaments in Vegas," Hilton was quoted as saying.

And she’s been on a winning streak too. "I'm really lucky in Vegas - I always win!"

We can all rest easy now. Poker is here to stay. The fact that the hold’em bug has bitten Paris Hilton, is a measure of just how deeply ingrained in the culture poker has become. Paris, you’re welcome in my game anytime.

My New Poker Radio Show Set to Debut April 20

My new online poker radio show is set to debut on Thursday, April 20th at Hold'em Radio. The show is titled Keep Flopping Aces, and will be co hosted by Amy Calistri. Keep Flopping Aces will be web cast at 9:00PM EDT (or 8p-CDT, 7p-MDT, and 6p PDT, respectively.) If you can’t listen live, you can catch it in replay just by going to www.holdemradio.com and tuning in.

Our show will be one hour long, and will air each Thursday. We intend to provide you with the best guests we can find, as well as offer tips of the week, poker news online and off, a “media minute” that will cover new poker books and magazines, reviews of the televised poker shows, poker in the movies and anything else related to poker in the limelight.

We’ll also give you the latest rumors, facts, and news concerning poker.

We’re hoping for a show with plenty of listener interaction, and an active chat window will be operative during the show’s duration.

I hope you’ll tune it. I’ll post more about the show here in the week leading up to its broadcast debut.

What's Next Now That the USA Ignored the WTO Ruling About Online Gaming?

The April 3 deadline imposed on the United States by the World Trade Organization to stop discriminating against Internet casinos in foreign countries was ignored, which really shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s followed this issue here or on other sites.

By way of a quick recap, last year the WTO sided with Antigua in finding the United States’ online gaming laws unfair to other nations because of exceptions offered in the U.S. Interstate Horseracing Act and other statutes that allow some wagering on the Internet.

The United States asked for a year’s delay in order to implement accommodating federal legislation. But the deadline passed on April 3 with no action from the US. Antigua’s counsel, Mark Mendel, said last Tuesday that he was formally advised by the office of the U.S. trade representative that there would be no further negotiations.

“Our request to have meaningful negotiations was rejected,” Mendel said. He added, “If the United States won’t go back to the WTO bargaining table, measures initiated this week under WTO procedures would seek compensatory trade sanctions against the United States.

One sanction Antigua was likely to seek from the WTO, according to Mendel, would be to lift U.S. patent and copyright protections in Antigua. Such action could trigger a wave of knockoff manufacturing of previously copyright protected U.S. products such as music CDs or computer software.

Mendel stated that the WTO once granted similar patent waivers as compensation in a case involving Ecuador.

The WTO’s decision might also motivate other nations that allow online gambling to pursue similar claims in order to gain legal access to U.S. bettors.

Perhaps Antigua’s minister of finance, L. Errol Cort, summed it up best when he said. “If a small nation like Antigua takes on the world’s greatest superpower and wins, and if they are going to ignore that reality, it makes you wonder about the long-term prospects for this system. “It’s got to be fair for everybody.”

UK Poker Stocks Surge as US Opposition Diminishes

Online casinos soared in value yesterday on the London stock exchange as growing opposition mounted to legislation outlawing Internet gambling in the United States.

Shares in Party Poker firm PartyGaming surged 11 percent after debate in the US House of Representatives yesterday threw up opposition to a bill proposing a ban on web-based gambling and the use of credit cards and electronic payments to place bets online.

Richard Hunter, of Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers in the UK, was quoted as saying that “Opposition to the bill is good news for the industry, which expects to double its 2004 revenues by 2008.”

Just imagine the growth surge if online poker providers were permitted to operate legally in the USA.

Trade Wars, Online Wagering, and Unforseen Consequences...

Has America shot itself in the foot by ignoring the World Trade Organization’s ruling about its dispute with the tiny Caribbean nation of Antigua over online wagering?

The US was given an April 3 deadline to comply with the WTO, but opted to ignore it. Now that decision may come back to haunt the US in another trade dispute — this one concerns huge trading partner China, not tiny Antigua, and is not as easily ignored. Here’s the story. The Bush administration has accused China of violating global trade rules by imposing high taxes on auto parts from the United States and other countries, and plans to file a complaint against the Chinese with the WTO.

U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman said “. . . China should be held accountable for its actions and be required to live up to its responsibilities.” But by ignoring the WTO decision about Antigua’s online gambling industry, has the US has provided China with ammunition they can use against us? From my perspective, it’s difficult to envision how we can ask for a favorable ruling in our dispute with China, while ignoring WTO rulings we don’t agree with, such as the decision rendered in our dispute with Antigua?

In the spirit of “what goes around, comes around,” one impact of the United States’ decision to ignore the WTO’s ruling in the Antigua case is that it will encourage countries such as China to give the United States a dose of its own medicine.

Now that April 3rd has come and gone and the US has failed to respond to the WTO deadline, we’ll see if this action results in unforeseen consequences during future trade disputes.

[For background material on the US/Antigua dispute about Internet gambling, just scroll down and you’ll find all of my previous posts on this topic].

Harrah's Plans to Reopen Grand Casino Biloxi this Summer

Reports I’ve read state that Harrah's has plans to reopen the Grand Casino Biloxi this summer, in a move that will put 1,000 people back to work. Reopening the casino is the first phase of what’s planned as a destination resort on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

The project’s scope involves rebuilding all of the hotel’s land-based facilities in addition to the casino. The Bayview Hotel tower and convention center are slated to be redesigned and integrated into a new casino and 500-room hotel that will feature a steakhouse, 300-seat buffet, swimming pool, and a 16,000-square-foot full-service spa.

While this won’t bring life back to normal on the flood ravaged Mississippi Gulf, it’s a big step in the right direction.