Poker affiliates accesory to crime?

[JimmyJazz1]

I heard from a friend that poker affiliates will be deemed an accesory to crime in the US. Can anyone back this up with documented proof? Thanks.

[LuckyTxGuy]

I cannot imagine how a poker affiliate could be legal now? I had a Party affiliate account that I rarely used and I canceled it the week before the ban went through. I would probably advise talking to an attorney on this one.

[tinhat]

I'm not a lawyer but I think this pertains solely to U.S. - U.S. affiliate/player since 1) if it isn't illegal in a players' country to wager online, the U.S. affiliate wouldn't be participating in a crime and 2) if it is illegal in that other country the U.S. AFAIK isn't in the business of enforcing other countrys' laws so ostensibly wouldn't care. But I'm not a lawyer.

From http://gamblingandthelaw.com/columns/2006_act.htm (which someone posted here early after the legislation left the Senate):

" The greatest danger here would seem to be with affiliates. Any American operator can be easily grabbed. This includes sites that don’t directly take bets, but do refer visitors to gaming sites. If the affiliate is paid for those referrals by receiving a share of the money wagered or lost, it would not be difficult to charge the affiliate with violating this law, under the theory of aiding and abetting. Being a knowing accomplice and sharing in the proceeds of a crime make the aider and abettor guilty of the crime itself. The federal government could also charge the affiliate with conspiracy to violate this new Act."

[Pokeraddict]

[ QUOTE ]
2) if it is illegal in that other country the U.S. AFAIK isn't in the business of enforcing other countrys' laws so ostensibly wouldn't care.

[/ QUOTE ]

The U.S. government is expecting other countries to do this for us. Why would we not do it for them?

[MagCFO]

If you're being paid for players that are in the US, it's absolutely illegal. You probably won't find documented proof, since I don't think anyone has been convicted of this yet.

And this isn't anything new either. It's always been illegal. There was an Affiliate in New Jersey who was busted a couple years ago for taking bets himself. One of the other small charges related to him being an affiliate.

It's really pretty obvious it's illegal. Affiliates get paid a portion of the house win (unless you do CPA). That's being partners in an illegal business, clearly.

All you need to do is call an attorney that understands online gaming. Believe me, I've spoken to many of them and they all say, absolutely do not get your company involved in affiliate deals.

I use to have personal (outside my company) affiliate deals, but I don't do those anymore just because I don't have time. I understood it was illegal though.

[DrGutshot]

I was also wondering about this - does anyone have any more information?

-DrG

[StellarWind]

The irony of the new law is that it is now apparently legal to be an affiliate for Party and other rooms that no longer serve U.S. residents.

[gonebroke]

[ QUOTE ]
The irony of the new law is that it is now apparently legal to be an affiliate for Party and other rooms that no longer serve U.S. residents.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree with your conclusion.

[onlinepokerguru]

ANY UPDATES ON THIS? IS IT LEGAL OR ILLEGAL TO BE AN ONLINE POKER AFFILIATE?

[Ron-Mexico]

Illegal

[coachkf]

[ QUOTE ]
ANY UPDATES ON THIS? IS IT LEGAL OR ILLEGAL TO BE AN ONLINE POKER AFFILIATE?

[/ QUOTE ]

I think if you read I. Nelson Rose's breakdown, it becomes pretty obvious that if you promote US facing online poker rooms then you are assuming some risk.

If all you do is promote non USA poker rooms (Party, Pacific, Paradise, Titan), then you have no worries. You won't be helping connect US players to online poker.

That being said, nobody has been arrested specifically for being an affiliate, and IMO it won't happen. I think sports betting affiliates take on more risk than poker affiliates, since the DOJ's efforts have focused on sports betting up to this point.

I do know of several successful online gambling affiliates who moved outside the USA, or at least moved their server hosting outside the USA.

[joeker]

Yes...it's definitely illegal, will it be enforced? Like Coachkf says, probably not. Sure....the DOJ could make an example out of a large affiliate or two, they'd probably receive cease and desist letters first though.

[Sniper]

Worth noting, 2+2 is now a Party affiliate...

[LotteryOrPoker]

I am a decent size affiliate for poker rooms and sports books. I did consult an attorney in my area that I have used several times in the past. He made me aware that promoting gambling was already a crime in my state. He also told me that the DOJ likes to make examples out of people at times and that not everyone they prosecute is necessarily guilty. The problem is that it takes tens of thousands of dollars to fight the criminal complaint.

Someone mentioned they might indict a "large" affiliate. How would they know who a large affiliate is? My guess is that they would just do a whois lookup on some affiliate websites and indict the owners. I don't think that would happen, but who knows?

Luckily the affiliate business was not my main source of income. The affiliate business was nice because it helped me create a bankroll that I turned into something really nice playing with. Lately I have been cashing everything out except enough fundage for fun.

[RiverFenix]

In a thread in the legislation forum StellarWind posted that "One distinction that has been made before is that affiliates who get paid a flat fee per signup are probably much less vulnerable than those who take a percentage of the rake."

Can anyone give any insight as to why this is / hed say that?

[Skallagrim]

The best short answer to this question is probably that an affiliate to an online poker site is breaking the law if it helps an online poker site break the law. The begging question: what law is the online site breaking?

While StellarWind maybe was overstating the likely effect, an affiliate who only claimed a sign-up fee could say signing up was not illegal, only the subsequent money transfer for and/or playing was illegal and I dont get involved in that - something the 'perctange of rake' affiliate obviously cannot say.