Antigua-US Online Gambling Dispute to be Concluded

11 years into the online gambling dispute of Antigua and the US, the parties might finally come to an agreement.

US gambling news report that Antigua and Barbuda have reached an agreement with the United States over the distribution of online gambling revenues. The details of the agreement are not public yet. At the dawn of the millennium, the US prohibited all cross-border gambling activities offered by operators based in Antigua. In 2003, Antigua brought the case to the World Trade Organization (WTO), claiming that the US had violated its commitment to free trade in recreational services.

Developments in the long-enduring online gambling dispute

In November 2015, the Antigua cabinet was considering a proposal from the United States. The cabinet remained secretive about the proposal. However, the news suggest that the parties are close to a resolution. Earlier last year, Antigua’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne gave a powerful speech, criticizing the balance of power:

“After 11 years […] my people are entitled to conclude that the powerful continue to ignore and trample the rights of the weak and that might is right.”