Gambling News - November 2006 Edition

More Americans Playing at Online Casinos than Ever Before

Despite the recent passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement UIGE) Act, which prohibits U.S. banks and credit card companies from processing financial transactions between U.S. residents and online casinos, there has been a significant increase in the number of U.S. residents requesting access to online casino sites.

Scan Safe, a web security firm, reported the increased interest in online casinos after it detected a 40 percent rise in U.S.-based requests for online casino sites.  The findings were released in its “Global Threat Report” which also covers instant messaging, spy ware and viruses. Vice president of Scan Safe product strategy, Dan Nadir, said that although they had expected a decline in the number of American-based requests for online casinos after the passage of the UIGE Act, the number had actually increased.

At least initially, not only has the new legislation failed to diminish interest in online gambling, it seems to have actually emboldened online gamblers to continue with their hobby in spite of its illegal status.  Many online gamblers are just ignoring the new law, finding the appeal of online gambling just too difficult to resist.  Online gambling is a worldwide phenomenon and one that doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon.  The strong anti-online gambling stance favored by the U.S. does not seem to be enough to curtail the growth of the online gambling industry, especially if U.S. residents are willing to skirt the law in order to play.

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