An influential credit rating agency is predicting that regulated online gambling is coming to the United States soon. The agency says that regulation in America is “increasingly likely,” something that that is very good for online gamblers, casino owners and investors.

Fitch Ratings is a credit rating agency that is considered influential by industry leaders and lawmakers. Their ratings and predictions are used as an objective way to measure economic growth, or lack thereof, at the state or national level. Fitch Ratings is now saying that at either the state level or the federal level, regulation of online gambling is most likely coming to the United States in the near future.

Fitch Ratings released a report stating the likelihood of a liberalized online gambling market in America. They reported that land-based gambling facilities currently bring in $60 billion in annual revenue and that revenue from offshore online gambling companies range from $5 billion to $6 billion per year. Harnessing that money and adding it to the land-based revenue would be of great benefit to the industry, the states and the people. The report also suggested that the $6 billion spent on online gambling would “ramp up significantly” if the market was liberalized, giving the people easier access to the websites and making it clear that they won’t face prosecution for playing a game.

Among the signs that America is headed toward a liberalized online gambling market are the partnerships of Wynn with PokerStars and Caesars Entertainment with 888 Holdings. The report also pointed to the cash-strapped local governments and the federal governments. With the government in need of more revenue and the market already heading in that direction, liberalization of the market seems inevitable.

Teddy Sagi, the founder and controlling shareholder of Playtech, is planning to acquire Greece’s biggest gambling company. Sagi, who is looking to expand his business interests, is reportedly considering buying the Greek Organization of Football Prognostics (OPAP) from the Greek government.

In the middle of a debt crisis, the Greek government is looking for any revenue they can find. For that reason, they recently announced that they want to sell their portion of OPAP. The Greek government currently owns a 34% stake in the gambling company.

Sagi is interested in buying those shares from the Greek government. He, along with at least one other investor, have already engaged in talks with OPAP about a potential acquisition. Sagi owns better than 40% of Playtech, the online gambling software designer he launched in 2000.

If he is unable to outright buy all of the government’s shares of OPAP, there are still two other options for Sagi. He could buy a smaller portion of the company. While the government is looking to unload all of OPAP, something would be better than nothing. Another possibility would be a Playtech-OPAP merger, though that would be a last recourse for the Greek government. They are looking for an immediate cash influx, something a merger would not provide.

The Greek Organization of Football Prognostics was founded in 1958 as a state-run gambling company, specializing in the lottery and sports betting. They are a monopoly that has exclusive rights to offer those services in Greece. Estimates place OPAP’s worth at €1.5 billion.

A recent study by Spain’s Institute for Policy and Governance found what most people already assumed: People spend more money in online casinos than in brick and mortar casinos. If only they had simply asked me instead, I could have saved them the money of funding that study. I even know enough Spanish to tell them in their native tongue.

Not only did the study tell us what most intelligent people already assumed, but it also provided reasons that can also be easily assumed. The study says that people spend more money at online casinos because they don’t actually see the money they’re spending. They don’t have to put chips on the table or put coins in a slot machine. All they have to do is click a button, so they are less likely to notice how quickly their bankroll is being depleted.

This, of course, applies to more than just playing casino games. One of the problems with credit cards and debit cards is that it removes people from the experience of spending money. They are only giving a card, which eventually either leads to an amount of money being subtracted from a much larger sum in their bank account (debit card) or will have to be paid for later (credit card). Because they don’t have to reach in their wallet to retrieve cash and realize that there is less money in there than there had been, it’s hard to keep track of how much money is being spent. It’s the reason I never set up a bar tab.

If it’s difficult to keep track of the amount of money you spend using a card in person, it’s even more difficult online. That is why it is so important to practice wise money management. Budgeting seems to be a lost art, but it is vital for the online gamer. At the beginning of every month, you should budget the amount of money you can afford to spend at the online casino that month. I say spend, because you can never assume that you’re going to win money back. When budgeting, assume that you will lose every penny you wager. When you don’t, it will be a pleasant surprise. After you come up with a monthly budget, narrow it to a weekly and daily budget. When you are going to play at an internet casino, deposit the amount you have budgeted and don’t deposit any more, no matter what happens that session. If you do that, you will not spend more money than you intended.

Though everyone is different, the people who oppose gambling tend to be against it for one of two reasons. Either they are opposed to it on moral grounds, thinking that gambling is greedy or gluttonous, or they do it because they worry about the decay of society and about everyone turning into a degenerate gambling addict.

The first is hard to argue because people have their own beliefs about what is immoral. I would, however, point out that if gambling is greedy, then so is putting your money in a 401(k) or buying stock. If gambling is gluttonous, then so is eating too much food or buying a house that is larger than you need.

Most of the anti-gambling people don’t think it should be illegal to invest, super-size your meal or buy a mansion. Even if those activities are immoral (and at least one of them isn’t), I don’t think they should be illegal. After all, if morality is imposed on people then they have no choice but to be moral. If there is no choice, is there any virtue in it? It’s all about free will. That brings me to the second part.

Opponents of gambling seem to think that the first time playing a hand of blackjack or spinning an online slot, they will become addicted and will not be able to stop themselves from blowing their life savings in the casino. They often cite “gambling addiction” as the reason for their concerns.

Personally, I prefer to call it “problem gambling” or a “gambling compulsion.” I do that because addiction to me requires that a person be physically dependent on something. If they are unable to satisfy that compulsion, they have physical effects, such as withdrawal. For an example of the difference, lock a problem gambler in their room to prevent them from going to a casino. Then lock a heroin addict in their room to prevent them from shooting up. Did you notice a difference in behavior?

I don’t say this to downplay the compulsion some people feel to gamble. I don’t say it to downplay the lives ruined by people with a gambling problem. I only say that to mean that logging onto an online casino isn’t the same as smoking crack. Someone isn’t going to play a few hands of poker and then lose all control of themselves. Problem gambling can be kept under control if the player, their friends, and the people around them are observant and diligent.

And if they still have problems, they should seek help. I’ve heard countless reports about people becoming “addicted” to Facebook, video games, sports and more. Just as I don’t think any of those things should be banned, I think people should be free to gamble, online and offline. But that is my opinion. What do you think?

The Netherland Antilles is no more, with the former Dutch Caribbean colonies of St. Maarten and Curacao becoming autonomous nations of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. They joined Aruba, which did the same in 1986, gaining independence from the Dutch while maintaining direct ties to the crown. The remaining countries of St. Eustatius, Saba and Bonaire, became autonomous municipalities of the Netherlands. So what does that mean for online gambling?

It could mean everything or it could mean nothing. The islands making up the Netherlands Antilles, which existed for 56 years, have long enjoyed a lot of autonomy from the Dutch crown. Though online gambling is illegal in the Netherlands, the islands of the Dutch Antilles were free to create their own gambling legislation. After opting to legalize and license online casinos, the islands became a major hub of online gambling in the world, with Curacao being the top internet gambling destination.

With St. Maarten and Curacao now independent, they are free to re-write any of their laws, but since they were already partly autonomous and one such law that differed from the Dutch was regarding online gambling, it seems unlikely that they will change much relating to online casinos. The other countries are now municipalities of the Netherlands but it is unlikely that the Dutch will exercise greater control over their laws and economies.

The dissolution of the Netherland Antilles is largely ceremonial and the most practical aspect is revenue sharing. Prior to the dissolution, the different sized islands making up the Netherland Antilles had disputes over how much revenue should go to each. Now, with two islands made autonomous nations, they handle their own economies.

Last year, William Hill and Ladbrokes, two of the largest online gambling companies in the world, made headlines by leaving the United Kingdom. They both relocated to the Republic of Gibraltar because that nation has a tax rate that is more than 10 percent less than in the UK. Now Betfair is suggesting they may do the same.

To say that they are threatening to leave may be a bit harsh, but Betfair has made it known that they would consider relocating if there is a tax hike soon. It just so happens that the UK government is considering raising taxes on online gambling operators. Currently, online bookmakers located overseas do not pay a gambling tax to the UK government, but domestic companies, such as Betfair, pay a 10% levy.

According to sources, Betfair has a contingency plan for if the tax rate becomes too high that would include moving to Gibraltar. In Gibraltar, there is no extra tax for online gambling or horseracing businesses, only a 3% tax on the gross profit.

Betfair says that they are currently happy operating in the UK and the London-based company recently opened another office in Dublin, Ireland. They have also recently gone public on the London Stock Exchange, which is all the more reason for them to stay put. Still, when announcing the opening of their Dublin office, a spokesperson for the company admitted that, while no decision has been made, “like every company, Betfair puts in place contingency plans for the risks facing its business.” If there is indeed a tax hike, like any company, Betfair would have to look into whether their business would be better off elsewhere.

It is an interesting time for online gambling in the United States. As many people are aware, the Supreme Court of the state of Washington recently upheld a law banning all forms of online gambling, including poker. As a result, popular online poker website PokerStars pulled out of the state’s market and no longer allows Washington residents to play there. But why would they do that?

Understanding the situation requires understanding the U.S. Constitution, federal laws versus state laws, the American legal system and more. If you’re not familiar with all of that, here is kind of a crash course in what you need to know.

In 2006, the U.S. passed the federal Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) as part of the SAFE Port Act. When that happened, many online gambling operators pulled out of the U.S. market and stopped accepting American customers. That includes Party Poker, who at that time was the biggest online poker site worldwide and in America. PokerStars, however, remained in the market and clearly stated that they would continue to accept American customers.

They could do that because, despite what the federal government may sometimes say, there is no federal ban on online gambling or online poker (some don’t consider poker to be gambling at all, since it’s a game of skill). UIGEA does not make anything illegal that was previously legal (that position was verified by the Supreme Court). UIGEA holds banks accountable for the transfer of funds from illegal online gambling, but does not actually make online gambling illegal. Since there was no previous federal law banning online gambling and UIGEA did not do that, the logical conclusion is that no such federal ban exists. For that reason, PokerStars felt free to continue accepting American customers.

While there is no federal law banning online gambling, there is a state law banning it in Washington. When the law was challenged in court, the state Supreme Court upheld the law, reaffirming that online gambling and online poker are not legal in the state of Washington. Under state law, the players and the online gambling companies can both be held accountable for violating the law, which can include jail time.

Since allowing Washington residents to gamble on their site would be in clear violation of state law, PokerStars placed a ban on those who live in the state. Other online casinos and poker rooms are likely to follow their lead. Currently Washington is the only state banned by PokerStars.

There’s another factor at play as well. It is likely that if the U.S. ever decides to regulate online gambling, they will not allow online casinos to obtain a license if they are guilty of illegally accepting U.S. customers. Such a provision is in the current bill in the House that would repeal UIGEA. If such a provision became law and PokerStars continued to accept players from Washington, they would be ineligible for a U.S. license. That alone is worth pulling out of the market.

Gambling is a thriving business in Cyprus, both online and offline. Some of the gambling profits go toward legal, regulated casinos and book makers and some go to illegal, unlicensed entities. Now the legislature is attempting to take greater control over the industry, citing their concern with loan sharks.

While gambling in the country is thriving, so is the illegal practice of loan sharking. Racketeering has become a problem, particularly illegal activities by loan sharks, and it is related to the gambling market. In many cases, people are borrowing money to gamble, losing it and then facing threats, blackmail, intimidation and exorbitant interest rates.

The most obvious remedy for that problem is to not bet with borrowed money. Whether you’re playing online or at a land-based casino, you should never gamble with money you can’t afford to lose, especially with money you don’t even have. It’s also a bad idea to place a bet with a book maker with money you don’t currently have, assuming that you will win. Punters often don’t have to show the money up front, making betting on borrowed money more likely. If you lose one of those bets, you then have a problem of owing money to a book maker and if they are a loan shark, that’s when the real problems begin.

To combat this problem, the Cypriot government plans to crack down on person-to-person lending. A new bill in the House would place strict limits on what types of non-bank loans can be made and how they can be made. There would also be strict limits on the interest rate the lender can charge, which would eliminate extortionate rates.

Going after the loan sharks is only part of the government’s plan, though. They are also taking aim at the unlicensed illegal gambling activity, planning to crack down on any gambling entities that are not approved and regulated by the government. For online gambling, the government plans to use Internet filtering to sort out unlicensed online casinos.

I hate to sound like a car salesman here, but you’re running out of time to win money in the $30,000 Guaranteed Weekend Madness tournament. You probably figured that was the case. After all, the word “weekend” is in the name of the tournament, so since the weekend is over, you probably figured the tournament’s days are numbered. Well, you figured right.

Tuesday, September 28 (aka “tomorrow”) at 10:45 PM, the Weekend Madness tournament at Online Vegas comes to a close. There is $30,000 in guaranteed prize money up for grabs and still plenty of time to earn points and take a shot at the prize money. The tournament has a $10 entry fee, which is a little high for some, but not considering the prize pool. That buy-in gets you 325 credits to play with and you can rebuy for the same amount.

The Weekend Madness tournament is played on the Bangkok Nights slot, which is an online slot with a theme of nightlife in Thailand’s capital. If that tournament is a little too expensive for you or if you think it’s too late to earn enough points to win any prizes, there are smaller tournaments available as well. For example, every Monday through Thursday, the online casino holds a 24-hour slot tournament called the $8888 Guaranteed tournament. In that tournament, $4,444 is in casino credits and the other half is in bonus bucks. The tournament has an entry fee of $6.99 and a re-buy for the same amount.

Today’s $8888 Guaranteed tournament is played on the Big Foot slot and tomorrow it is on Dynasty. To take part in either tournament or any of the other tournaments that are regularly going on at the casino, visit Online Vegas Casino.

Lithuania is expanding their online gambling operations to allow extra games provided by a Greek company. Currently, the state lottery company of Olifeja has a monopoly on online gambling in Lithuania. Aside from sports betting, all online gambling is done through them. That has limited what they can do but now they’re accepting outside help.

Olifeja began as a provider of the traditional lottery game and then added bingo and keno, but none of the most popular casino games. They have now signed a contract with Intralot, an online gambling software developer based in Athens, Greece, and things are about to change. With the help of Intralot, they will soon offer a wider range of games, including online poker, instant win games and more. The games will be presented with better technology that should make the gaming experience more fun for visitors.

Antanas Murasaka, a spokesman for Olifeja, said that the deal will provide Lithuanian citizens with “exciting interactive games” and they will soon “become leader of the interactive gaming market in Lithuania.” Intralot is equally excited in the opportunity to join the Lithuanian market, even if it isn’t a large company. George Zenzefilis, general director of Intralot, said that by providing superior software, they will further Olifeja’s business and make it a “highly lucrative interactive gaming market.”

With the country soon to be offering a full online casino industry rather than simply a lottery, it is unknown what the European Union’s response will be. Previous rulings by the EU held that online gambling monopolies that excluded companies from other EU member states were illegal. Whatever comes from this deal, it’s fairly certain that Lithuanian citizens will soon have more choices for online gambling as well as a better and more advanced gaming experience.