Over a decade ago, US poker players and other game lovers were concerned that attempts at establishing state laws legalizing online poker and online gambling in general would never succeed. However, people continued to play poker in casinos and established clubs that offered betting games, and they also took time to venture online whenever they had access to poker sites. Sometimes poker players just took advantage of the fact that many state laws were silent on the legal position of online poker in their state.
Soon, however, the hopes of poker lovers were to be crashed by the enactment of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) which was clear indication that the US was bent on criminalizing online gambling. Luckily, for gambling enthusiasts, the law as it was became untenable. The US had already gotten used to having casinos and other brick and mortar clubs that offered gambling facilities, and therefore UIGEA could not have been seen in any other light but as a crackdown on internet gambling. After intense and unchecked ridiculing of that law, America let go and today, poker and other gambling activities are, for most part, regulated by individual state laws.
Why the Department of Justice (DOJ) thought UIGEA would work
The team that drafted the bill that developed into UIGEA had banked on the strength and spirit of the 1961 Interstate Wire Act, otherwise referred to as the Federal Wire Act. Their premise was that UIGEA would not be introducing anything new as the 1961 law already criminalized remote gambling. Of course, online gambling fell under remote gambling. That assumption was proven wrong in 2011 when the country put bare the fact that the Wire Act only banned betting in races and other sports and not online poker or other betting games.
That clarification of the federal government’s legal position gave a sigh of relief to the gaming fraternity that had already found a great gaming environment in online poker and online gambling in general. This was the juncture at which the role of handling gambling was left to individual states. Each state was to enact its own state laws regarding online poker and gambling as a whole.
States that have led in legalizing online gambling
Delaware was the pioneer in making online gambling legal, and it even extended the scope of legality to include gambling activity from other US states. In fact, the state laws in Delaware were so liberal that the only betting activities they locked out were lotteries and also keno. From Delaware, US residents could play baccarat;blackjack; bingo; wheel of fortune; craps; online poker; roulette; and related gamesand their variants.
Next in line was Nevada. This state that is famed for its gambling culture, particularly in its city of Las Vegas, took a bold step of legalizing online poker while at the same time taking caution not to legalize online gambling in its entirety. Of course, over the years, the state of Nevada, through its control board, has licensed a wide range of other online gambling activities.
As for the state of New Jersey, the state laws on online gambling may have remained confusing over the years, but the fact that the Department of Justice went ahead this year and licensed PokerStars to include New Jersey in its online gambling tournaments means there is potential growth of online poker and other online games in New Jersey and the rest of the US. In fact, the best part is the unfolding trend of states legalizing online gambling and not restricting it to the state residents alone. Permitting intra-state online activity is indication that the US online gambling scene is soon going to become very vibrant.
There are no smiles for investors in Macau casinos as September revenues underline the trend of declining revenues in the last five years. The peninsula’s casino revenues for the month just passed have been the lowest in the last five years. This disappointing level of Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) may have investors in the arena of poker and other betting games re-evaluating their future in the business.
Of course, there is no sign that poker and related games are about to stop in Macau any time soon, but investors cannot afford to sit on their laurels. There is, however, no panic as the gaming culture is well entrenched in Macau. The place has for many years been referred to as the Las Vegas of Asia. Playing poker and other betting games in this city is the order of the day.
How steep is the decline in Macau casino revenues?
Evidently, Macau’s gaming business has been experiencing tough times. According to Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, the comprehensive GGR for September this year has fallen by 36.2% compared to the same month last year. In absolute figures, the revenues for September 2015, whether from poker or any other betting games in the city’s casinos, totalled $22.05 billion. That translates to MOP$176.02 billion as the Macau currency, Macanese pataca, is much weaker compared to the US dollar. In fact, the local currency is also slightly weaker than the Hong Kong dollar (HKD).
The immediate revenue decline has been calculated to be 2.5%; that is the drop from the figure of August 2015 revenues. Whether something will trigger increased poker activity in coming months, or whether poker players and other betting enthusiasts will up their stakes resulting in increased revenues is something to wait and see.
There is, however, not much optimism for the 3rd quarter of this year as far as gross revenues from poker and related casino games are concerned. It is predicted that this year’s third quarter may see a drop in revenues of around 34.4% in comparison to last year’s 3rd quarter. A good number of gaming analysts are, incidentally, not surprised. According to them, September’s revenue decline in gross casino revenues has just been a culmination of 16 continuous months of falling revenues.
Why the fall in casino revenues?
Whereas none of the analysts has pointed fingers on poker or any other betting game in particular for the casinos’ financial woes, it has not escaped their notice that the number of Chinese VIP gamblers has significantly fallen. The rich in China do not just engage in online poker but also frequent established casinos where they are known for playing high stakes. This was the case in past years, where rich Chinese gamblers visited Macau, played poker and other betting games, and generally made the gaming scene very vibrant.
That scenario is apparently no longer sustainable as the Chinese government continues to weigh down on corrupt citizens. At the same time, casinos are now generally leaning more towards a mass market rather than relying on a few VIPs to keep them afloat. It is also not easy to underrate the impact of the initiatives on restricting smoking in poker playing areas and other public arenas in general. Gamblers are one lot that does not do well with strict rules, and as such, stringent social rules may keep some of them away from casinos and other public betting arenas.
Significantly too, in regards to the September revenue decline is a massive theft that took place in Wynn Macau casino, totalling a whopping $258 million. That theft was linked to Dore Holdings’ employees who act for high rollers as middlemen.
To tell the truth, the legality of US online gambling is not as straight forward as one thinks. The reason being though gambling is legal within the federal laws and regulations, every single state has the freedom to apply or for their matter restrict any given law within their own territories. One may find some states where gambling is restricted or better illegal in all its different forms whereas in some other territories one may find the complete opposite. In some sections of US, one may also find some types allowed while some are restricted. However this is just in the outside world and when we change our line of attention over to the cyber world, things just get a lot more complicated. There are many states that have passed state level regulations to decriminalize as well as standardize online gambling. For countless years online gambling legality has always remained in the gray zone and still after many years there exist numerous confusions as to which of them are allowed and which are termed as illegal.
Unlawful internet gambling legalized Act:
One of the main catalysts of this great confusion is mainly due to the law enforcement or regulations which was triggered off in the year 2006 namely via the- UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING ENFORCEMENT ACT. Though this did not make the practice of cyber gambling illegal, what it did manage to do is restrict the processing of the internet transactions and dealings which were linking to gambling. The UIGEA Act which was a part of the SAFE port Act was mainly introduced for regulating port security. The main obligation of this act was to restrict gambling businesses from deliberately accepting payments or transactions linked with another party or person in bet, involved in the usage of internet. They considered it as an act of Federal State Law violation and deemed it as unlawful or illegal. With the passing or this act, the meaning which came out was that- it was illegal on the part of those gambling web forums to accept money or any kind of depositions. This was also applicable for banks or financial institution to get engaged in such transactions. In simple words, this act did not make these online gambling activities illegal, but what it did was to infuse a fear of legal enforcement to whoever got engaged in such activities. It made them nervous about being involved in its affair.
This act was quite decisive in controlling such gambling activities and in the process prevented many people from getting involved in such matters. Before the UIGEA, there were numerous websites which provided real money to the US inhabitants via gaming or betting, but without any breaking or violating any state laws. But after the introduction of this act, all associated companies which were publicly listed on the stock exchanges, namely Party Gaming, ended the US operations instantaneously! Any others also followed that same path. But there were some who still continued with their operations as there was a strong feeling that the firms running websites from certain physical locations, where such things were legalized did not come under the US regulations.
The effect it had on the State levels:
After the introduction of the UIGEA, numerous states have passed their own state laws and regulations regarding online gambling. This as a result has led to the creation of numerous legalised as well as regulated gambling forums which are specifically meant for the inhabitants of US. These websites are constantly trying to keep up with the latest state legislative and regulatory alterations which affect cyber gambling in America. They also clearly mention on which states their gambling options are legal and also enlighten their end users about where the initiation of such legal proceedings that are being considered or for that matter debated.
Some examples where steps are being taken as we discuss:
Let us take the example of two US states; California and Pennsylvania where steps are being taken to make it happen.
In Pennsylvania, the biggest update regarding the matter came in April 2013. The house bill 2135 was wished-for, summoning the Pennsylvania Gaming control board to assume authorization and responsibility for the legal regulations of providing real cyber gaming within the state. However it was indicated that the undertaken legislation would be restricted. However some of the officials involved in the matter stated that there are still some chances that in some point of the future, things will happen as planned.
In California, online gambling is not legal; however there are still many websites in vivid parts of the globe which accept customers from California. Efforts are being made to legalize online gambling and the focus is mainly on online poker USA. Various bills have been submitted but this has been a bit in the way of a tangible process
Asia is comparatively new to the game of poker. It consists of48 countries. The Asia online poker law is, therefore, as diverse as the continent itself. With the internet revolution and influx of technology, there has been a paradigm shift towards the game of poker. You get to see both online and offline versions of the poker game in Asia.
The Asia online poker law – an overview:
Afghanistan: Gambling was outlawed during the Taliban regime. There are a few sites that offer online poker games there.
Armenia: Though online poker game is gaining ground in the mountainous country Armenia, there is still no legal site for the same.
Azerbaijan: Online poker is still at bay in Azerbaijan though the people here have the appetite for it. In consequence, there has been a black market for the game of poker here.
Bahrain: This island nation strictly prohibits the poker game.
Bangladesh: Bangladesh follows a strict policy on poker that prohibits the game in totality there.
Bhutan: Bhutan doesn’t endorse the game of poker though some online sites are accepting the players from Bhutan these days.
Brunei: Playing poker in Brunei can bring harsh penalties on you.
Cambodia: The country is known as the hotbed for the game of poker. People from across the border such as China, Thailand, and Vietnam come here to play the game.
China: Except Macau and Hong Kong, gambling is illegal in China. As such, underground poker market is huge here.
East Timor: Poker isn’t a popular game here. Moreover, the government has disapproved any form of gambling here.
Egypt: Egypt allows poker and gambling as a whole. In fact, poker is quickly gaining the popularity here.
India: Online poker game is not licensed here. You can, however, find many sites that are active here.
Indonesia: Indonesia is conservative about any form of gambling. Poker isn’t legalized here.
Iran: Iran endorses strict laws on gambling. Poker is completely banned here.
Iraq: Iraq despite being a Muslim country fully endorses gambling including the poker.
Israel: Gambling is legal but highly regulated by the government. Local companies, except the official lottery and sports betting, cannot run online gambling sites.
Japan: There is no legal casino in Japan. The government allows a restrictive practice here in the form of pari-mutuel betting with the official channels such as soccer toto, lottery, and public sport.
Jordan: Gambling is limited in Jordan and poker is completely banned here.
North Korea: Poker has no future in North Korea as gambling is completely prohibited here.
South Korea: South Korea endorses a restrictive view on gambling. Poker isn’t legalized here.
Kuwait: Poker is illegal in Kuwait and it bans any form of gambling.
Kyrgyzstan: Poker is currently prohibited here. Talks are on to legalize gambling here.
Laos: Gambling is technically illegal here, so is the poker.
Lebanon: The country endorses legal gambling. Except some lottery sites, there is no legal poker site currently active in Lebanon.
Malaysia: Poker isn’t popular here and there is no legal poker room in Malaysia.
Maldives: Gambling is illegal and so is the poker here.
Mongolia: Live poker is illegal here.
Nepal: The Nepalese are fascinated about poker, but it’s banned now.
Oman: Currently all forms of gambling is prohibited here.
Pakistan: Some forms of gambling are allowed, but poker isn’t popular here.
Palestine: Neither gambling nor poker is popular here.
Philippines: Gambling is very popular so is the poker here.
Qatar: Gambling is completely forbidden here.
Russia: All forms of gambling is banned here.
Saudi Arabia: Gambling is completely illegal in Saudi Arabia.
Singapore: Poker is popular though the laws on gambling do not hold a clear view of the country.
Sri Lanka: Gambling is legalized here so is the poker.
Syria: Poker isn’t legal here.
Taiwan: Poker is not legal in Taiwan though it is pretty popular here.
Tajikistan: Gambling is illegal though poker sites accept players from Tajikistan.
Thailand: Though illegal gambling is rampant, the Thai government is against it.
Turkey: Gambling is now banned in Turkey, but Turks have a big appetite for it.
Myanmar: Myanmar has 4 legal casinos, but poker is not popular here.
Turkmenistan: It has 2 legal casinos and 5 poker tables in total. Average disposable income is low here.
United Arab Emirates: All forms of gambling is strictly prohibited here.
Uzbekistan: All forms of gambling is banned here.
Vietnam: Except the state lottery, all forms of gambling is prohibited.
Yemen: Neither gambling nor poker is popular here with per capita GDP pegged at $2000 p.a. only.
In a nutshell, the Asia online poker law is mostly crippled either by the conservative laws of the land or by the poor per capita income.
It is a new dawn for online poker! PokerStars is the largest poker room where online poker players can spend and earn real money in their gaming. The fact that the players are doing online gambling means that they cannot see their gaming opponents and read their demeanour. They are also, very likely, not familiar with their style of playing or even their gaming history. That is where poker software comes in. It provides you with information that helps you up your game against the player you are competing against online. Hold’em Manager 1 (HM1) Poker Software, for instance, has been in the market for some time now, and recently HM2 has been introduced.
What’s the problem?
However, what seems to be raising eyebrows today is the use of third party software, and particularly the Game Theory Optimal (GTO), built by grinder ‘skier_5’, a London based software developer. The software seems to be skewed against expert and experienced online poker players, as more and more average players use it to become swift world class contenders.
It Is Great News for Expert Poker Players
Steve Day, PokerStars’ manager, says they may have to adjust their policy regarding skier_5’s third party software. This was after Baard Darl, the tournament manager of Sit & Go, had announced the possibility of the new online poker rules taking effect as from this month of October.
While novices may have enjoyed the use of skier_5’s GTO and built their names on the online poker scene, many old hands may, understandably, be disappointed by how it works. However, it will be the joy of great poker players to note that PokerStars has identified some third party poker software that has capacity to provide the static data and information that is helpful to all poker players, while not displaying sensitive information about the game at hand and the active player’s tactics. Even starting hand charts will contain only basic information and nothing sophisticated that can be used against an opponent while the online poker game is on.
Among the issues not in contention at the moment is the use of Heads-Up Displays (HUDs) that provide not just numerical but also non-numerical data. Darl explained that these HUDs are set to be cleared from the competitive poker scene so that those players engaged in online gambling will not have to contend with being categorized and their personalized statistics being displayed over devices. Third parties will also not be able to provide analyzed information on the equities of individual poker players as long as those players are busy playing. In addition, those HUDs that will pass the test and receive a clean bill of health will still be faced with the restriction of colours. With the emergence of the new regulations, the colours on display may be restricted to a total of just three.
No Threat to Old Software Developers
Other developers who have partnered with providers of online poker need not worry about business. For example, introduction of the new third party poker software to replace the one of skier_5 is not meant to affect the use of older tools like HM2 or even Poker Tracker 4. Even the Nash Charts will still be welcome.
However, the jury is still out regarding future admissibility of some tools like SessionLord’s Pre-flop Chart; Holy Grail of Poker; Poker Academy; HEM2’s LeakBuster; FlopZilla; Odds Oracle; PokerStove; NoteCaddy; and PT4’s Leak Tracker. In the meantime, poker lovers are welcome to air their views on the proposed changes on the Two plus Two poker forum where more than half a million members actively participate.
