Sportingbet Follows In PartyGaming Footsteps
Written by RogerCP | Tuesday, March 10th, 2009
When the UIGEA was passed in 2006 three of the most popular online poker rooms withdrew from the American market. These were Paradise Poker, owned by Sportingbet, PartyPoker owned by PartyGaming and Pacific Poker owned by 888. All three owners were publicly traded companies on the London Stock Exchange and the shareholders did not want to take the legal risks involved by continuing in the United States.
However the matter was not that simple. The Department of Justice (DoJ) held that online gambling was illegal in the United States even prior to the passing of the UIGEA under the Wire Act. They were actively pursuing cases under that law and had even made arrests. Thus directors and executives of these three online gambling portals were unable to set foot in the U.S.A. for fear of being arrested.
Now a Reuters news service report reveals that Sportingbet and the DoJ are likely to reach an understanding in the matter sometime in 2009. If that happens then Sportingbet would be absolved of any infringement of the law prior to the passage of the UIGEA. This would remove the sword currently hanging over Sportingbet’s head.
In this connection a statement released by the Chief Executive Officer, Andy McIver, reads, “We will hopefully reach agreement in the current calendar year; it’s not going to be weeks. The talks have been very amicable and very positive, but incredibly slow.”
Contrary to the statement released by the CEO, the company’s position as indicated in its official earnings statement is not as optimistic and definitely non-committal.
It reads, “The Board continues its discussions with the U.S. Department of Justice with regard to a possible resolution of the historical risk associated with the Group’s former U.S. business. These discussions remain positive and amicable, though no further clarity has been provided as to the likely outcome or its timing.”
In December 2008, one of the founders of PartyGaming, Anurag Dikshit, struck a personal deal with the DoJ. He admitted to violations under the Wire Act and agreed to pay a fine of $300 million to the DoJ. Despite this he may get a two year jail term when the case comes of for sentencing in December 2010.
The other founders of PartyGaming, Ruth Parasol and Russ DeLeon, have not entered into any such agreement. The official release from PartyGaming then was a vague and non-committal statement, almost identical to the one released by Sportingbet now. Though the discussions Sportingbet and PartyGaming are having with the DoJ are being kept under wraps, clearly something is cooking. A similar statement is due from 888 very soon.
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· Written by RogerCP · Filed Under Poker News · Comments Off
