Gambling News - May 2005 Edition

"Online Betting Platform BetBug.com Not Intimidated by Kyl Bill"

Want to take a bet on the Kyl anti-gambling bill's chance of success.

Up until now, the U.S. Government has based its position that online gambling is illegal on the provisions of the 1960s Wire Act which prohibits the use of the telephone lines for the transmission of gambling information. This Act has been the key piece of legislature that government officials have used in order to prosecute those in the online gambling industry. Law enforcement officials have not gone after individual Internet gamblers, but they have tended to target the Internet casino operators and website owners.

All that could change dramatically if Arizona Senator John Kyl has his way. The Senator has drafted a bill that will target Internet gamblers directly instead of overseas operators. If passed, Kyl’s bill, known as The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2005, will prohibit the use of banking services for the transmission of funds for online gambling purposes.

However the bill has little chance of passing, since the immense popularity of online gambling indicates that there won’t be much support for the bill. Most of the opposition to online gambling, and to gambling in general, comes from the religious right. The religious right is a very vocal and powerful lobby for its size, but the chances are slim that they will have enough influence to eliminate online gambling.

Even BetBug.com, an Internet gambling company that actually stands to benefit from Kyl’s bill, does not want it to pass because it would be detrimental to the industry as a whole. BetBug.com could actually benefit from Kyl’s bill. According to co-founder and CEO of BetBug.com, John O’Malia, BetBug.com is the only company to offer a betting platform that does not violate the Wire Act. BetBug.com’s platform, unlike other Internet gambling companies, allows bettors to make private wagers, and does not act as the bookmaker in any way. If Kyl’s bill were to pass then BetBug.com would be the only legal option available for those wishing to gamble over the Internet. However, BetBug.com stands firm in its position that if it’s not good for the entire gambling industry, its not good for them and they don’t want the bill to pass.

Whatever happens, everyone in the Internet gambling industry will be relieved when they know that the bill didn’t make it.

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