Betfair Plays a Role in the "Road To Regulation" at the recent iGaming North America Conference! Really, say it ain't so. WTF was that about! Last week the inaugural event called "iGaming North America Conference" was held at the Monte Carlo Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
This was a two-day conference event on Internet Gambling and was attended by more than 300 people. A panel discussion on "US Policy - State vs. Federal Legislation" took place on Wednesday, where gaming industry leaders believed they could see a window of opportunity to pass federal legislation; legalizing and regulating Internet gambling. But the panel at this discussion also believes efforts are being slowed down by the industry's inability to develop a unified regulatory strategy. The GamblingGurus believe "the industry" has enough troubles in their inability to even recognize a non-reputable company to do business with, aka: Betfair, little lone trying to take a role in regulating it.
Betfair's vice president of government and public affairs for North America (a Lobbyist in some circles); Laurie Itkin stated, "I don't think we've earned the right to even have the discussion", referring to how Internet gambling should be regulated and we could not possibly agree with her more on that statement! Congratulations on the event organizers part here in even allowing Betfair to be an event/conference sponsor and also selecting Ms. Itkin as a panelist... Hollywood can't even make this kind of stuff up folks! See why we say this below.....
Betfair is a Rogue British Internet gambling company whose U.S. subsidiary, TVG takes horse racing wagers in 18 US States. Betfair is a Rogued & Blacklisted Casino here at the GamblingGurus.com, surprisingly they made many bad decisions awhile back with their casino players legitimate winnings not being paid out and then they decided to go quiet about the issue and not make it right by the players. Read the story in the link above and you will see for yourself why Betfair is in our Rogue Pit of Doom.
Casinomeister states that: "Players need to be aware that Betfair will confiscate winnings at a whim. If they don't like the way you play, even though you risk your own funds and meet the wagering requirement, they will exercise their right to seize your winnings".
Now, someone please explain to us why a publicly traded company the size of Betfair would do this to their players and please further explain why the iGaming North America Conference event organizers would even allow this company to take part in this monumental event? Anyone....I think I could hear a pin drop right about now...
But of course not paying players their legitimate winnings is not good enough reason to keep Betfair and their VP from making a major appearance at this illustrious event... It's all about the money and sponsorship dollars at these events and conferences it seems, "Honor, Integrity, Principles...Everything Is Negotiable"; CASINOJACK knew this! The organizers of this conference event are not alone though in the fact that they are willing to accept tainted money to support their event.
Other iGaming Event Organizations such as the publishers of iGaming Business and iGB Affiliate also seem to not have any qualms about accepting tainted sponsorship dollars either from Rogue Affiliate Programs such as Affiliate Club, aka: Casino Club and Belosers, aka: Bwin & Bewinners, as their spokesperson recently stated here on the GPWA Forum, "They have not broken the terms of their contract" referring to Bewinners, even though long time business associates CAP & the GPWA may think differently!
How Corrupt Are You? Take the test now and see...Just for chitz & gigglez!
Ah, what lengths some companies will go to in lust of the almighty dollar...eh!
Anyway, back to the regulation part and last weeks North America iGaming Conference...As always, the industry seems to be split over whether the States or the Federal Government should be the body and/or bodies to regulate online casinos and online gambling. We all know that the Internet for the most part has no borders, unless of course you live in China or one of the other communist run countries. Some industry players believe that the federal government should be the one to regulate it as "interstate commerce" under authority granted by the Interstate Commerce Act, while others agree that States such as Nevada, who already have good regulatory structures in place that could be implemented expediently are the one's who should regulate it.
Some big name Vegas industry leaders also worry that if several States adopt different rules and standards then the public will be confused about what is and isn't legal or illegal as was recently seen when Caesars Entertainment may have helped New Jersey's Governor, Chris Christie make up his mind to veto Gambling Bill S490/A-2570.
Panelist Itkin also stated that, "it's not just about rival casino companies seeing eye to eye. It's about casinos, California card rooms, the horse racing industry and other shareholders getting together".
Another panelist at this discussion was Mark Tenner, president of the Concept Development Group. Tenner said that online casino games could eventually win approval and he expects Internet poker players will continue to be vocal about the legalization aspect but he also thinks that online sports wagering will not win favor, in most part because the NFL opposes it and only recently agreed not to stand in the way of the legalization of online poker regulation.
Five States now have pending legislation for online gambling regulation in one form or another. California has two Senate bills in play and Florida, Iowa, Hawaii and Nevada are in the game as well. New Jersey's legislation was vetoed by Gov. Chris Christie as previously mentioned and the City of Washington, D.C., has now approved a bill that legalizes games of skill and games of chance, as long as they don't violate federal law.
Back in New Jersey, Sen. Raymond Lesniak is rumored to be getting ready to sponsor a resolution for a referendum in November that could possibly clarify that casino gambling via the Internet could occur outside Atlantic City. This was one of Gov. Christie's so called reasons for vetoing the passed Senate Bill.
Las Vegas Assemblyman, William Horne introduced Nevada's proposal that has now been referred to the Ways and Means Committee. The legislation directs the Nevada Gaming Commission to develop online gambling regulations once the State has assurances that it will not violate any federal laws. Both California Bill's allow Native American Tribal Casinos to participate and have now been referred to the State's Committee on Governmental Organization.
Panelists at the conference stated that the fallout from "Black Friday", which was the unsealing of indictments against 11 executives from three online poker companies that happened on April 15th, is that it stopped any momentum that had been building in its tracks. Further proof of that was when Wynn Resorts said it had terminated its deal with PokerStars and ESPN terminated their advertising deals with Full Tilt and Pokerstars. But the panelists also said it also proves that the industry is in much need of regulation.
It was also feared by the panelists that already temperamental Conservative Republicans in the Senate will get further energized by the effect of the DOJ Poker Indictments, with the main accusations being that online companies were misrepresented and the transactions were mis-coded for what was actually being paid for and this action further defrauded the banks. Lest we not forget though that SunFirst Bank's vice-chairman, John Campos was allegedly on the take as well and arrested in Saint George, Utah on April 15th being charged with six counts in the indictments.
As the discussion wrapped up, panelists said there would still be a chance for federal legislation if the poker fans remained vocal and focused amongst other factors such as the gaming industry developing a unified front and the need for additional tax revenue becomes too great to resist.
It's only about the money folks, it always has been! From corrupt politicians to the iGaming event organizers who continuously fail to do their homework on which online gaming businesses they choose to climb in bed with. But sure, some of the iGaming Conference Organizers know exactly who they are getting in the sack with but choose to do it anyway, no matter because it still boils down to the hard cold fact that "it's all about the money"! Show Me The Money! Why bring morals and integrity into any business decision? Why even consider "The Players" or "The Affiliates"; who truly are the actual bread and butter of the online gaming industry...NO, There's no room for any of those considerations any longer in the world we live in today it seems.
The Gambling Guru
0 comments:
Post a Comment