Nambling Notes - Feb 23, 2001

On the U.S. Front -- The two leading proponents of an Internet gambling ban in Congress -- Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia and Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona -- are ready to unleash their bills again. Goodlatte says his chances are better this year because Attorney General John Ashcroft is on hand. While a senator, Ashcroft voted to outlaw Internet wagering, so expect no help there. Goodlatte says he thinks "he’ll get everybody on board heading in the same direction," and says he plans to reintroduce his bill "in the next several weeks." Kyl, for his part, says he may wait until Goodlatte introduces his bill in the House before putting his before the Senate, where it passed easily last year.

Goodlatte may be feeling extra confident that his bill will pass now that he's been named vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's new Courts, Internet and Intellectual Property subcommittee. Members of the subcommittee will cover U.S. intellectual property laws, the federal court system, judicial discipline and misconduct, and Internet-related issues. There's no guarantee, however, that any Net betting prohibition bill introduced by Goodlatte would be referred to this committee instead of the Commerce committee that has covered previous incarnations of the bill. One source that's familiar with Internet gambling issues called such a move possibly favorable. "If such a bill were referred to the new subcommittee, it would arguably be a positive move," the Washington D.C. lobbyist said. "If they treated it as an Internet issue, not a black-and-white crime issue, then they'll have made the first step to realizing the only appropriate resolution of this issue is a rational regulatory regime."

IGN reported on December 13 that Nevada Assemblywoman Merle Berman was drafting legislation that would legalize and regulate Internet gambling in her state. According to sources familiar with the bill, the legislation could be introduced as early as next week for consideration.

On the European Front -- The Alderney Gambling Control Commission has just launched a new website, located at www.gamblingcontrol.org.

Ananova reports that British online bookie Blue Square has joined the tax-free betting movement, wagering that the U.K. government will drop betting tax in its upcoming budget announcement. "Blue Square's decision to stay in the U.K., in the face of an offshore exodus by many bookmakers, now looks sure to be vindicated in the upcoming Budget," a company spokesperson said.

On the Legal Front -- With high tech crimes on the rise, help was sorely needed. As a result, the Michigan State Police Computer Crimes Unit was created, Tribune News Service reported. "We've got a lot of people from a lot of different agencies working together, and there's always going to be work out there," said the unit's new commander, Lt. Brian Albright. The group will battle high tech crimes ranging from Internet gambling to pornography, money laundering and other crimes involving computers.

Makin' Deals -- Tropika International Limited has signed an agreement with Edeal to develop and market a casino chip auction for its flagship casino, Fairplay Casino. The two companies will develop and market CasinoChipAuction.com as a promotional site allowing gamblers to bid on bundles of chips from Fairplay Casino. The value of the chip bundles will range in value from $10 to $150 and will be redeemable by playing at Fairplay.com. John Ashbee, Tropika's chairman and CEO, labeled the deal "exciting" and explained that it would "be targeted at millions of enthusiasts of promotions, sweepstakes, and gaming." The promotional auction site is expected to launch next month.

Company X Corporation of Belize has signed on with dot com Entertainment Group to switch its affiliation from another software provider. The changeover is expected to happen sometime in April. Scott White, dot com's president/CEO explained, "This licensee has joined us from another Internet gaming software company, confirming our business strategy, which is to attract market share from existing Internet casino operators.'

Florida Gaming Corporation has signed a multicast agreement with Starnet Communications International for worldwide distribution of its Miami jai alai games by Starnet subsidiary, World Gaming Services, Inc. Florida Gaming is one of the largest jai alai operators in the world, owning and operating two pari-mutuel wagering facilities in Florida.

In the News -- New online casino VegasLobby.com will let users receive sports scores and casino news on wireless devices, and is also broadband and WebTV ready. The site launches this month, while the wireless service will probably be available in April. "By creating the ultimate online gambling portal, we serve two purposes," said Joel Bess, president of VegasLobby. "We provide a state-of-the-art resource for online gamers that actually looks out for them, and we've developed a premium advertising environment for online casinos and sportsbooks."

Bingomania is sporting a new look courtesy of its new Version 4.0 software. "We looked around extensively to see what our competitors were doing and decided to stick with our original game plan of having a functional game screen that is easy to use, and still pleasing to the eye," said Bingomania's General Manager Stuart Gordon. The changes include a dashboard-like screen with improved graphics, which lets players chat, view recent winners, and play up to fifty cards at a time. The software now has a fully integrated chat mode and a full auto-play mode. Players can also opt for a private chat room or chat privately with another player. Bingomania is an Antigua-licensed site offering free, nickel and quarter online bingo games.

Following the death of seven-time Winston Cup champ Dale Earnhardt, Sportsbook.com has refunded back all future wagers made by its customers on Earnhardt to win the Winston Cup. Earnhardt died Sunday following a last-lap crash during the Daytona 500.

What's In A Name? -- SafeTpay.net has changed identities in order to avoid any potential trademark conflict. The newly christened Kryptosima's premier product is now called PAYENKRYPT. The product enables web merchants to accept ATM cards and card-present credit card transactions over securely over the Internet.