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Canada Urged to Gamble on Internet Casinos8 June 2001TORONTO, Canada – June 8, 2001 –As reported by the (Canadian) National Post: "Governments should stop trying to ban Internet gambling and face the fact the rapidly growing, Canadian-flavoured business is here to stay, delegates of an international online gaming conference heard yesterday. "That means provinces in Canada should set up Web casinos and offer their citizens a legal, regulated option to offshore sites that are outlawed here, said one e-gaming entrepreneur attending the Toronto convention. "…Internet gambling -- in which Web surfers can play casino games, take their chances with virtual slot machines and bet on sports events -- has doubled in size in each of the last three years, Sebastian Sinclair, a U.S.-based analyst specializing in the industry, told the summit. "…Canadian companies are at the forefront of the industry, running gaming sites and designing software that is used by the operators. "But Internet gambling is still effectively banned in Canada, United States and many other developed countries, so firms based in North America run their sites from Caribbean and South American nations that permit the practice. "…In Canada, only provincial governments or their licencees can operate gambling venues. There is nothing to stop them from offering Internet gaming, said Hal Pruden, a Department of Justice Canada spokesman. "…The delegates and exhibitors who filled the convention's trade floor with displays of flashy Internet gaming software seemed upbeat about the industry. A breakthrough might come with legislation in the U.S. state of Nevada that would legalize online gaming sites if regulators feel the sites can somehow discourage gambling addicts, exclude underage bettors and keep out customers from jurisdictions where such gambling is illegal…" |