lastsamurai
07-12-2006, 02:22 AM
http://www.forbes.com/2006/07/11/partygaming-gambling-bill-cx_po_0711autofacescan06.html
London - It's rarely fun and games in the U.S. House of Representatives, but on Tuesday politicos were debating online gambling, ahead of a vote on a bill that would effectively pull the plug on the practice in America.
Lawmakers who contend that Internet gambling is both addictive and dangerous, want to prevent people from using credit cards, checks, wire or online payment services to settle their wagers.
Gibraltar-based PartyGaming is one of the thousands of gambling sites in the $12 billion industry which would be hit hard by the proposed U.S. bill. The firm founded by the billionaire Anurag Dikshit and entrepreneur Ruth Parasol in 1997 is currently the world's largest online poker brand. It gets 80% of its revenue from the United States.
A spokesman for PartyGaming said criticisms about addiction to online gaming were "nonsense."
The gaming giant has been closely watching the development of the Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act. "We have our eyes and ears on the ground," the spokesman said. PartyGaming is relying on an industry group in Washington to lobby against the bill.
Meanwhile, the fact that Dikshit, along with three other founders of the company and now three directors have been offloading their shares in the firm has raised questions about their confidence in the industry's future. PartyGaming has denied that the share sales are connected to political developments in the U.S.
London - It's rarely fun and games in the U.S. House of Representatives, but on Tuesday politicos were debating online gambling, ahead of a vote on a bill that would effectively pull the plug on the practice in America.
Lawmakers who contend that Internet gambling is both addictive and dangerous, want to prevent people from using credit cards, checks, wire or online payment services to settle their wagers.
Gibraltar-based PartyGaming is one of the thousands of gambling sites in the $12 billion industry which would be hit hard by the proposed U.S. bill. The firm founded by the billionaire Anurag Dikshit and entrepreneur Ruth Parasol in 1997 is currently the world's largest online poker brand. It gets 80% of its revenue from the United States.
A spokesman for PartyGaming said criticisms about addiction to online gaming were "nonsense."
The gaming giant has been closely watching the development of the Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act. "We have our eyes and ears on the ground," the spokesman said. PartyGaming is relying on an industry group in Washington to lobby against the bill.
Meanwhile, the fact that Dikshit, along with three other founders of the company and now three directors have been offloading their shares in the firm has raised questions about their confidence in the industry's future. PartyGaming has denied that the share sales are connected to political developments in the U.S.